After eventually scoring some of the several opportunities they generated, South Korea defeated the Czech Republic 2-1 on Thursday to get their World Cup campaign off to a winning start.
It appeared that the Czechs would punish the Koreans for their wastefulness until the 80th minute, but in a Guadalajara stadium that was far from full, substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu scored the game-winning goal.
Despite dominating the first half, Son Heung-min’s Koreans were unable to score.
After blasting one attempt over the bar, the former Tottenham player drove to his left, dodging two Czech defenders before shooting wide.
Ladislav Krejci rose at the front post to force a header past Korean goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu as the Czechs scored against the flow of play to start an exciting second half.
On minute 67, Hwang In-beom cleverly equalized by faking a shot and then caressing the ball over Czech goalkeeper Matek Kovar, eventually making the Korean pressure pay off.
After the Czechs’ goal was disallowed, Hwang assisted him, crossing from the right for Oh to slot home. Son collapsed to the ground in happiness as the game came to a frenetic conclusion and the final whistle blew.
South Korea will play co-hosts Mexico, who earlier on Thursday, June 18, defeated South Africa 2-0 in the tournament’s first Group A match.
On the same day, the Czechs play the South Africans in Atlanta.
AFP
About The Author
