North Korea U20 swept past Palestine U20 4-0 in their Group Stage-3 clash at the AFC U20 Championship on Saturday, a result that showed the hosts had little intention of letting up. The visitors paid for a sloppy opening phase and never really got back into the contest.
Kim Yu-Jin broke the deadlock in the 50th minute, and by then the match was already tilting in North Korea's favour. An Jin Sok doubled the lead four minutes later, and the visitors looked increasingly shell-shocked.
Pak Kwang Song added a third in the 56th, and the visitors refused to go away even when the game was effectively over. Ho Myong-ryong completed the tally in stoppage time, a clean finish that sealed a comprehensive victory.
The hosts arrived with momentum, having won their two previous group games against Iran U20 and Vietnam U20. Palestine, meanwhile, had shown flashes of promise but struggled to string wins together, losing to Iran and Bahrain in their last outings.
The four-goal margin puts North Korea firmly in control of their group campaign. Palestine will need to regroup quickly if they are to salvage anything from this tournament.