SEOUL-- Losing to Brazil, world No. 1 in men's football, is one thing. But looking so flustered in the process, the way South Korea did in their 5-1 defeat Thursday, is quite another.
Neymar converted two penalties, while Richarlison, Philippe Coutinho and Gabriel Jesus had a goal each in a convincing win at Seoul World Cup Stadium. Hwang Ui-jo had the lone South Korean goal in the first half.
It was the first of four friendlies that South Korea will play this month, as part of preparation for the FIFA World Cup kicking off in Qatar in five months.
The result had hardly been in doubt. Few, if any, would have expected South Korea to beat Brazil.
And Brazil set the tone from the opening moments, and nearly scored barely a minute into the game, when Thiago Silva's goal was called off on offside. Richarlison's opening goal came in the sixth minute.
From early on, Brazil's attackers started putting pressure on South Korean defenders deep in the zone. The likes of Neymar and Richarlison, putting together their considerable skills to form the first line of defense, won back the ball from scrambling South Korean defenders with stunning ease.
And once they regained possession in the offensive zone, the Selecao demonstrated why they are No. 1 in the world, breaking down the defense with quick, crisp passes and impressive footwork that drew oohs and aahs from 64,000-plus fans.
Even when they outnumbered pressuring Brazilian players, the South Korean defenders rushed their attempts to relieve such pressure.
The South Koreans were often a step or two behind the Brazilians in their own zone, which resulted in two fouls on speedy left back Alex Sandro in the box. Neymar converted both of the penalties.
South Korea did create some good looks on the offensive end, and head coach Paulo Bento praised his players for their pushback after nervy opening moments, but ultimately, the lack of discipline and organization on defense proved too costly
Gabriel Jesus rounded out the scoring during stoppage time with some great individual effort, as a handful of South Koreans simply let the Manchester City forward walk in alone on net.
Bento noted how Jesus' goal "had nothing to do with the offensive process" but was due to his team's defensive miscues.
"We made simple mistakes in the defensive process. It gave opportunities to the opponent to create more (scoring) chances than they should create," Bento said. "To play against this kind of team, we need to be more effective in the defensive process. We need to be more aggressive. The level of aggressive was not enough."
The next test for South Korea in their buildup for the World Cup comes Monday against Chile.
Source: Yonhap News Agency