South Korea crushed Kuwait 9-0 in their first match of the men's football competition of the Asian Games in China on Tuesday to emphatically kick off their pursuit of a third straight gold medal.

The national football team, led by Coach Hwang Sun-hong, defeated their Middle Eastern opponent in the Group E match at Jinhua Sports Center Stadium in Jinhua, scoring four goals in the first half and five more in the second.

VfB Stuttgart midfielder Jeong Woo-yeong scored a hat trick while Gimcheon Sangmu FC forward Cho Young-wook netted two, and Paik Seung-ho, Um Won-sang, Bak Jae-yong and An Jae-jun added one each.

South Korea is first in the group as Thailand and Bahrain drew 1-1 in their match earlier in the day.

Team Korea will now face Thailand on Thursday.