Asian Cup 2015: Semi-Final Scores, Results, Updated Draw and Schedule
Australia and Korea Republic will contest the 2015 Asian Cup final after respectively beating United Arab Emirates and Iraq in their semi-final ties.
Below, we detail the semi-final results, updated draw and schedule for the tournament.
Tuesday, Jan. 27 Recap
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| Australia 2-0 United Arab Emirates | Hunter Stadium, Newcastle. |
Australia booked their place in the Asian Cup final with a simple 2-0 victory over United Arab Emirates, who shocked favourites Japan in their previous round.
Any nerves quickly subsided for the hosts, who took the lead through Trent Sainsbury's header after just three minutes. Sainsbury found space in the box and easily steered home Massimo Luongo's cross, much to the delight of an excited crowd.
The lead was doubled 11 minutes later when Jason Davidson took advantage of mayhem in the UAE box. Bodies flew in front of Majed Naser's goal to block two shots, but eventually, Davidson coolly turned home to all but confirm the win inside quarter of an hour.
United Arab Emirates huffed and puffed with little end product, creating few chances in a disappointing showing. The tournament's Twitter feed highlighted their lack of creativity:
Australian fans won't care, however, and now have a major final date against Korea Republic to look forward to. Be sure to watch the highlights of Australia's semi-final win below:
You can check the remaining fixtures right here:
| Jan. 26 | Korea Republic 2-0 Iraq | 8 p.m. | 9. a.m. | 4 a.m. |
| Jan. 27 | Australia 2-0. UAE | 8 p.m. | 9. a.m. | 4 a.m. |
| Jan. 30 | Iraq vs. UAE | 8 p.m. | 9. a.m. | 4 a.m. |
| Jan. 31 | Korea Republic vs. Australia | 8 p.m. | 9. a.m. | 4 a.m. |
The Aussies lost to Japan in 2011's final and should now be considered favourites to triumph in front of their home crowd.
Monday, Jan. 26 Recap
| Korea Republic 2-0 Iraq | ANZ Stadium, Sydney. |
South Korea remain in the hunt for their first Asian Cup trophy since 1960 after overcoming Iraq with a comfortable 2-0 win during the opening semi-final, reported by the tournament's official Twitter feed:
Lee Jung-Hyub provided South Korea with the advantage inside 20 minutes. He latched onto a curled free-kick from Kim Jin-Su, softly steering his header beyond Jalal Hassan in the Iraqi net.
Radhi Shenaishil's team have been full of running throughout the competition, but they struggled to create clear chances against a technical South Korean outfit.
Kim Young-Gwon doubled the lead five minutes after the break, smashing his effort from outside the box into the ground. A deflection stopped Hassan from following the shot clearly, allowing the victors to conserve energy by slowing things down for the rest of the match.
Iraq tried to replicate their upset victory over Iran, but ultimately offered more energy than quality against a side who are yet to concede a goal this competition.
Be sure to check out the highlights, per the Asian Cup feed:
South Korea pose a real threat to Australia in the final after confidently progressing through the tournament so far.
