Seoul: South Korea suffered a 5-0 loss to Brazil in their men's football friendly match at home, going down without much of a fight against a superior opponent. Estevao of Chelsea and Rodrygo of Real Madrid each grabbed a brace for the sixth-ranked Brazil, who also got a goal from another Real Madrid star, Vinicius Junior. South Korea, world No. 23, have now lost eight of their nine meetings against Brazil.
According to Yonhap News Agency, coached by Hong Myung-bo, South Korea were credited with only one shot on target in front of 63,237 fans at Seoul World Cup Stadium on this rainy Friday night. South Korea captain Son Heung-min became the country's most-capped male player by making his 137th international appearance. In another milestone for the home team, midfielder Lee Jae-sung earned his 100th cap to become the 16th South Korean man to join the FIFA Century Club.
Capitalizing on their overwhelming speed and skill, Brazil seized early control of the match and never relinquished it. South Korea were credited with just one shot attempt in the opening 45 minutes and spent the majority of the first half scrambling to keep their opponents at bay. Vinicius Junior set the tone for Brazil in the 10th minute by sending a right-footed shot from outside the box just wide left of the target.
The visitors got on the board in the 13th minute with some nifty passing play. Bruno Guimaraes threaded a through ball that found Estevao, who zipped his way behind defender Lee Tae-seok before firing a shot past helpless goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo. The Brazilians kept the pressure on with their quick passes through the middle of the field, and South Koreans had trouble catching up to them in open space.
In a blink-and-you-miss-it transition play, Vinicius Junior fed Rodrygo for a shot that went right at Jo in the 21st minute. Seven minutes later, Eder Militao sent his header higher following a corner taken by Estevao. Brazil got their second goal in the 41st minute in a display of exceptional vision and techniques.
Brazil's lead ballooned to 4-0 within four minutes of the second half, with South Korea turning the ball over at their own end on both scoring plays. In the 47th minute, center back Kim Min-jae couldn't handle a pass from fellow defender Kim Ju-sung cleanly, and Estevao simply walked into the box to unleash a left-footed shot for a 3-0 lead. Two minutes later, Brazil stripped South Korea of the ball in the attacking zone and Vinicius Junior found a wide-open Rodrygo in the center of the box for the 4-0 goal.
Son Heung-min and Kim Min-jae, South Korea's pillars on offense and defense, were both subbed out in the 63rd minute, with coach Hong waving the white flag and opting to give reserves a chance to play. Vinicius Junior joined the Brazilian goalfest in the 77th minute, going on a one-man fast break and beating Jo despite slipping inside the box. With the match's outcome long decided amid unrelenting autumn rain, hundreds of fans started heading for exits with several minutes left.