JINAN, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- China's 2-0 defeat by South Korea in the AFC Asian Cup Wednesday has ranked as one of the most-searched topics on the local internet and on Chinese social media.

China's national football team secured a knockout berth after two morale-boosting victories. But several key players had to rest before the third group game against arch-rivals South Korea, which China lost 2-0.

There are only a few times that China's national football has managed to defeat South Korea since 1978.

As China's head coach Lippi mentioned, South Korea bested China in areas like possession, speed and personal skills.

Many Chinese fans noted on social media that the result was to some extent inevitable.

And Chinese fans also saw a potential silver lining after the 2-0 defeat. Some said the defeat should serve as a warning to China about the upcoming challenges, as China will take on Group A runners-up Thailand in the knockout stage in three days.

"It was not bad. I thought it could be a 5-0 loss, but China only conceded two goals, a lucky result," a user said on Weibo, where the China-South Korea game ranked as the most-read topic on Thursday.

Some fans even joked about the result. "South Korea sent former world champion Germany home with a 2-0 win in group stage at the Russia World Cup, and China lost to South Korea 2-0 in Asian Cup, so China could concievably draw Germany," said Weibo user Qu Yang.

Chinese fans are also optimistic about the quaterfinal, with star striker Wu Lei set to recover from injury.

"China lost the game, but the good news is Wu Lei will play next, " China Youth Daily wrote on their Wechat account.

"China men's team need to improve of course, but I do hope they can be more aggressive. We should be always with them as long as they try their best," another fan wrote on Weibo. Enditem

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