In the final Group H match (against Portugal) of the Qatar 2022 World Cup group stage, Korea pulled off a dramatic 2-1 come-from-behind victory thanks to a dramatic second-half extra-time goal. Brazil were beaten by Cameroon in the last match of Group G, but will face us by finishing first in the group.
As the group stage drew to a close, attention was paid to each of the 16 teams from the 32 countries who progressed to the World Cup finals. Korea also came second in Group H and proudly reached the round of 16. On the 6th, Korea will face Brazil, which is No. 1 in the FIFA rankings, a strong candidate for the championship.
Asian teams, who created a sensation from the start of this tournament and made headlines, achieved the feat of progressing to the round of 16 in three countries, a record number. Australia and Japan progressed to the round of 16 ahead of host nation Qatar and six members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), while Korea made a dramatic exit from the group stage.
In the group stage, Asian teams showed immense potential, with Saudi Arabia defeating champions Argentina and Iran defeating Wales. Japan, who belonged to Group E of the ‘Group of Death’, defeated football powerhouses Germany and Spain in turn, creating a storm to rise to the round of 16 as first place in the group. The fulcrum was the Republic of Korea. After a draw against strong Uruguay, they beat Portugal to advance to the round of 16 among Asian teams.
The round of 16 starts with the game between the Netherlands and the United States at midnight on the 4th. Our eyes turn to the 6th. Following the Japan-Croatia match at 0:00am on the day, the match between Korea and Brazil will be played at 4:00am If Korea catches Brazil and advances to the quarter-finals, there is a possibility that ‘the last game of the World Cup between Korea and Japan’ comes to an end.
In an interview immediately after advancing to the round of 16, national team captain Son Heung-min said, “I will do my best in the upcoming match,” and when asked about the possibility of a match with Brazil , “Isn’t the football result nobody really knows? I will do my best to prepare for a few days and play another good game.”
Reporter Kim Bong-gu, Hankyung.com kbk9@hankyung.com
