A clinical Japan swept past South Korea 4-1 on Wednesday to set up a Women’s Asian Cup final against host Australia, with the two-time champion putting on a masterclass.
West Ham’s Riko Ueki and Tottenham’s Maika Hamano scored in the first half in Sydney, with veteran Saki Kumagai and Remina Chiba adding to the tally after the break.
They had three more goals disallowed.
It was a dominant display by Nils Nielsen’s world-number-eight team and a warning shot to the Matildas.
Japan meets Australia in the final at the same stadium on Saturday after Sam Kerr scored the winner in the host’s 2-1 semifinal win over defending champion China on Tuesday.
While Australia has had to fight hard to reach the final, it has been a far easier ride for Japan.
With former Denmark and Switzerland coach Nielsen at the helm, it has bagged 28 goals in its five games so far and conceded just one.
It was always going to be a big ask for South Korea against a side it has not beaten in over a decade and which is ranked 13 places higher.
Japan, which made seven changes from its quarterfinal line-up, was unrelenting at the start and should have been 1-0 up after seven minutes.
But Manchester City midfielder Yui Hasegawa fluffed a sitter, slicing her shot wide in front of an open goal.
With the match played almost exclusively in the South Korean half, a breakthrough was inevitable, and it came from Ueki in the 15th minute.
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Liverpool’s Fuka Nagano won the ball in the box and offloaded it to her teammate, who calmly side-footed home — her sixth goal of the tournament.
Japan kept the pressure on and doubled its lead 10 minutes later when Hamano darted into the box from the right and slammed in from an acute angle at the near post.
She was overcome with emotion, and tears streamed down her face.
Japan had two more goals disallowed, for offside and handball, before the break, as South Korea clung on.
It was more of the same when they returned, with the Koreans barely getting a look-in.
A Ueki effort clattered off the crossbar before the third goal finally arrived from Kumagai with a forceful header on 75 minutes.
Against the run of play, Kang Chae-rim pulled one back for South Korea before Chiba’s powerful drive minutes later sealed a dominant win, with a third goal disallowed for offside close to the finish.
Published on Mar 18, 2026
