South Korea bounced back in the opening game in Group A after taking a pounding from Czechia, but midfielder Hwang In-beom was the hero putting in an assist as well as one goal early. The win will give South Korea a head start in the World Cup and could help them go up a notch in the group stage.
South Korea built better opportunities and had far greater possession for most of the game, pushed on by their captain, Son Heung-min. Tonight the Tottenham signing had more than his fair share of troubles on the Czech defence as he was consistently able to pick up the game’s tempo and unclutter up the space, but for now, the South Koreans had neither control nor a sense of direction in the first half.
Although the Czech national team was downed for a significant portion of the match, they were able to stay under control defensively and take the lead at 18:17. The Czech national surprised the South Korean defence by slotting home from that in front of him by captain Ladislav Krejci.
But this goodwill was short-lived, though. Hwang In-beom gave the Koreans the winning chance when he found the far post in the 67th minute. The ball was played through on goal, and he did so in a calm manner and made it 1-1, giving his team the legs to play back into the game.
South Korea kept pressing forward following the equaliser and they finally made the comeback, with Hwang having a vital part to play. The swing-around demonstrated his and his team’s resilience and attacking strength despite being down much of the game.
For South Korea, the win will be a welcome appetiser en route to their next steps in the knockout bracket and for Czechia it will be important for them to turn things around in their remaining group stage games.