Aiming to reach the Under-20 World Cup final for the second time in a row, South Korea Under-20s meet Italy Under-20s in Thursday evening's semi-final at Estadio Unico Diego Armando Maradona.
The Tiger of Asia sunk Nigeria 1-0 after extra time to seal a spot in the last four, while the Azzurrini put Colombia to the sword 3-1 in the quarter-finals.
Match preview
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Continuing his excellent scoring run at the Under-20 World Cup and giving Chelsea fans plenty to get excited about, Cesare Casadei's sixth goal of the tournament set Italy on their way to a resounding quarter-final success over Colombia on Saturday.
Casadei headed home the opening goal with nine minutes on the clock before Tommaso Baldanzi and Francesco Pio Esposito also got in on the act, putting the tie well and truly to bed before Jhojan Torres popped up with a second-half consolation for the Colombians.
In doing so, the Azzurrini made it through to the semi-finals of the Under-20 World Cup for the third time in a row, but they are yet to make their debut in the final and fell at this stage in both the 2017 and 2019 editions, eventually going on to win the bronze medal in the former year.
Keeping just one clean sheet in their last nine games may be an area of concern for Carmine Nunziata, but his side have scored at least twice in each of their four World Cup wins so far in 2023 and may owe thanks to their opponents for denying them a reunion with the one team to have bested them so far.
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Indeed, the Flying Eagles of Nigeria downed Italy in the group stage before stunning host nation Argentina en route to the quarter-finals, but the African trailblazers would run out of steam during a taxing 120-minute fight with 2019 runners-up South Korea.
Following a scoreless 90 minutes in which Nigeria could and probably should have completed the job, Choi Seok-hyeon's header in extra time settled a closely-fought affair, in which the South Koreans posted just four shots compared to 21 for the Flying Eagles and only saw 40% of the ball.
However, when it came to putting the ball in the back of the net, Kim Eun-joong's side produced the goods, and a second successive appearance in the semi-finals now awaits South Korea, who were defeated in the final of the 2019 tournament by Ukraine.
Prior to the most recent edition, South Korea had only reached the semi-finals of the Under-20 World Cup on one previous occasion in 1983 - placing fourth that year - and while they may be the underdogs on Thursday, they have just one defeat on their record from their last 13 matches in all tournaments.
Furthermore, South Korea thumped Italy 4-1 in their only previous Under-20 meeting at the 1981 World Cup, and a similarly merciless showing here would book the Asian nation a final date with either Uruguay or Israel.
Team News
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Italy boss Nunziata gave the armband to Samuel Giovane for the quarter-final win over Colombia, but the Atalanta BC youngster lasted only an hour before coming off with a reported injury concern, although the seriousness of his issue is not yet known.
Either way, Giovane will be closely monitored over the coming days as Luca Lipani remains on standby, and the Azzurrini have no other fitness concerns to manage ahead of the semi-finals.
While Casadei's sixth goal of the tournament made plenty of headlines, special praise was reserved for Baldanzi - who had a hand in all three goals with one of his own and two assists - and the Empoli protege will get the nod in the number 10 role again.
Meanwhile, South Korea head coach Kim should be blessed with a fully-fit crop for the semi-finals, although Kang Seong-jin may be fearing for his place after being withdrawn at half time against Nigeria.
Bae Joon-ho or Lee Ji-han could therefore feel optimistic about their chances of a start on Thursday, while Lee Seung-won will captain the Tiger of Asia after supplying the corner for Choi's winner in the quarters - his fourth assist of the tournament so far.
Italy Under-20s possible starting lineup:
Desplanches; Zanotti, Guarino, Ghilardi, Turicchia; Casadei, Prati, Giovane; Baldanzi; Ambrosino, Esposito
South Korea Under-20s possible starting lineup:
Jun-hong; Chang-woo, Ji-soo, Seok-hyeon, Ye-hoon; Chan-wok, Sang-yun; Yong-hak, Seung-won, Joon-ho; Young-jun
We say: Italy Under-20s 2-1 South Korea Under-20s
With Italy often failing to keep the back door shut in Argentina so far, South Korea should make the net ripple at least once on Thursday evening, but it will be a different story for the Asian starlets at the back.
Indeed, the Casadei-inspired Azzurrini have showcased a penchant for attacking flair, and with South Korea far from consistent defensively over the past few weeks, Italy should punch their ticket to the final for the first time.
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