Hong Myung-bo is trying to win the preliminary round for the first time in 16 years
Hong Myung-bo is trying to win the preliminary round for the first time in 16 years
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Hong Myung-bo, who has confirmed his progress to the World Cup finals for the 11th time in a row, aims for a successful finish through unbeaten qualifying.
The South Korean national soccer team, led by head coach Hong Myung-bo, will play its 10th match of Group B of the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North Korea and the U.S. at 8 p.m. on the 10th at Seoul World Cup Stadium.
South Korea defeated Iraq 2-0 at Basra National Stadium in Iraq on the 6th (Korea time) to confirm its advance to the finals of the North-China World Cup. South Korea, which has recorded 11 consecutive World Cup appearances since the 1986 Mexico Games, has increased its world record to sixth and first in Asia. It is a total of 12 appearances including the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland, which was its first appearance.
South Korea, which has continued its journey to North Korea, China and the U.S. since November 2023, will conclude its long journey of about one year and seven months through the match against Kuwait. Regardless of the outcome of the match, South Korea acquired the ticket to the World Cup finals, but is tying its soccer boots with the aim of winning the preliminary round, No. 1 in the group, and winning the home ground.
At the third preliminary match, Korea had five wins and four draws. Including the five wins and one draw in the second preliminary match under Jurgen Klinsmann, Hwang Sun-hong, and Kim Do-hoon, Korea has recorded 10 wins and five draws in 15 matches.
Korea had two away matches against Japan at the 1954 event in Switzerland, and achieved its first World Cup finals dream by garnering one win and one draw. In the final qualifying round held under the current five to six countries, Korea passed the preliminary round without losing a match at the 1990 event in Italy and the 2010 event in South Africa.
At the 1990 preliminary match led by coach Lee Hoi-taek, the team had nine wins and two draws, and at the 2010 preliminary match in South Africa under coach Huh Jung-moo, it had seven wins and seven draws with three wins and three draws in the third preliminary round and four wins and four draws in the final preliminary round. If Hong Myung-bo does not lose at the match against Kuwait this time, he will achieve an unbeaten record in the preliminary round for the first time in 16 years since the final preliminary round for the 2010 South African World Cup.
If the team achieves an unbeaten record in the preliminary round, it will also confirm its No. 1 ranking. Korea, which has 19 points, is three points ahead of second-ranked Jordan (16 points). With Korea and Jordan both scoring 16 points and seven points, if Korea loses to Kuwait and Jordan defeats Iraq, the ranking will be reversed. At the 2022 World Cup qualifying round in Qatar, Korea lost to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the final match and lost to Iran.
Above all, it would be perfect if Korea celebrates its advance to the World Cup finals and wraps up the preliminary round with a victory. Notably, Korea only won once in four home matches of the third preliminary round with one win and three draws. It is an opportunity to respond with a victory to its strenuous cheering.
At an official press conference held the day before, Hong said, "We will maintain the framework we have been doing so far," but hinted, "There will be changes in players because we have learned some roles by position." Regarding the physical condition of Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur), the captain of the national team, he said, "I will talk to the player after training and decide."
Lee Jae-sung, who attended the event as a representative of the national team, conveyed Son Heung-min's emphasis to the national team. "He emphasized the importance (against Kuwait) by referring to the last World Cup qualifying round, which (Son) Heung-min finished after losing to the UAE by his players," he said, expressing his strong will to repay his fans with victory as he had few home matches.
Meanwhile, 메이저놀이터 Korea is ranking 23rd in the FIFA rankings, far ahead of Kuwait (134th). The team is also dominating the previous matches with 13 wins, four draws, and eight losses. The last loss was 0-1 defeat in the finals of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup on October 16, 2000. In the third qualifying round of the North Korea-China World Cup on November 14 last year, which was the latest showdown, Oh Se-hoon (Machida Zelvia), Son Heung-min and Bae Joon-ho (Stoke City) won 3-1 with consecutive goals.