Goalkeeper Akihiro Hayashi after Japan’s win over South Korea on Thursday. A Telegraph picture

Calcutta: It was sudden death for two-time defending champions South Korea as 10-man Japan beat heavy odds to make the AFC Youth Championship final at the Salt Lake Stadium on Thursday.

Asia’s two best footballing nations were pitted against each other in the first semi-final, and predictably, the game produced absorbing soccer from start to finish. Eventually, Japan found in goalkeeper Akihiro Hayashi the hero around whom a fairytale was scripted. Japan won 5-4 after 120 minutes of a physically and emotionally charged duel.

Regulation time ended 1-1, followed by a goal each in extra-time. In the penalty shootout, Hayashi saved two shots to knock out the champions. The match was barely 36 seconds old when Korea converted their first attacking move into a goal through Shim Young-sung. Japan equalised almost in similar fashion seconds after the second session started. Yasuhito Morishima, fed brilliantly by a Yosuke Kashiwagi flick, beat Korean custodian Jo Su-huk with a powerful shot from close.

Japan suffered the setback in the 84th minute when Tomaoki Makino stopped Young-sung’s goalbound run with a tackle from behind, prompting Iranian referee Mohsen Torkey to immediately flash the red card. South Korea, enjoying numerical superiority, pressed for the killer punch. But Hayashi stood in the way of their ambitions, thwarting one attack after another.

Japan, slightly against the run of play, took the lead just on the cusp of the first half of extra-time when substitute Kota Aoki found the . Korea, riding a never-say-die attitude, restored parity with the final five minutes to go. Their substitute Kim Dong-suk nicely curled his free-kick around the Japanese wall from top-box.

In the shootout, Tsukasa Umesaki, Morishima and Aoki converted for Japan, Yosuke Kashiwagi hit the post, while Masato Morishige and Yohei Fukumoto’s efforts were saved by Su-huk. For South Korea, Young-sung and Lee Sang-ho’s shots struck the woodwork and Hayashi denied Dong-suk and Choi Chul-soon with fine saves. Only Park Hyun-bem and Bae Seung-jin were spot-on.

TEAMS

Japan: Akihiro Hayashi; Atsuto Uchida, Shunsuke Tsutsumi (Shinji Kagawa, 46), Yohei Fukumoto, Tomaoki Makino, Tsukasa Umesaki, Atomu Tanaka, Yasuhito Morishima, Kazuhisa Kawahara (Kota Aoki, 63), Yosuke Kashiwagi, Jun Aoyama.

South Korea: Jo Su-huk; Choi Chul-soon, Park Jung-hae, Lee Sang-ho, Shim Young-sung, Park Joo-ho, Lee Chung-yong (Park Hyun-bem, 91), Song Jin-Hyung (Lee Hyun-seung, 51, Kim Dong-suk, 109), Shin Young-rok, Bae Seung-jin, Shin Kwang-hoon.

Referee: Mohsen Torkey (Iran).