Spain beat Korea 2-0 to finish 5th; qualify for CT

New Delhi: Olympic silver medallist Spain ended their hockey World Cup campaign on a high, defeating Asian champions Korea 2-0 here today to finish fifth in the mega-event and qualify for this year’s Champions Trophy.

With this win, Spain have kept their slate clean in the fifth-sixth classification match in the World Cup, having won four out of as many appearances. Today’s win also extended the Spaniards head-to-head against Korea. The two teams have earlier met once in the tournament in the bronze medal play-off match in last World Cup in Monchengladbach, where the European side came out victorious. Experienced striker Pol Amat scored both the goals (first minute, 32nd), including the second fastest goal in the history of the game to hand Spain a comfortable win at the floodlit Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium. Amat’s goal within the first 22 seconds of the match is the second fastest goal in history of the game after India’s Ajit Singh who achieved the feat in 11 seconds against Argentina during the 1976 Montreal Olympics. Korean players were sharp in midfield but were not that effective inside the Spanish Dee. With a place in this year’s Champions Trophy in sight, Spain began with a bang as a sliding Pol Amat registered the fastest goal of the tournament in 22 seconds from an Alex Fabregas pass from the left. Stung by the early strike, the Koreans did manage some dangerous moves but the Spanish defence stood tall to thwart their opponent’s any scoring chances. Spain continued to maintain better ball possession and pressurised the young Korean side in the dying stages of the opening half. Their efforts bore fruit three minutes from interval when Amat scored his second goal of the match to give Spain a 2-0 lead at the halfway stage. Korea dominated the possession in the early stages of the second half but they failed to penetrate the Spanish defence. The Spaniards, on the other hand, seemed content to hold on to their lead as they threw more weight at the back after the breather while managing some breakaways in between through quick counter attacks. The Koreans tried hard for goals in the match and in the effort earned three penalty corners but they failed to find the back of the Spanish net on any occasion. The Champions Trophy will be held in Monchengladbach, Germany. PTI