Milton keynes: Unlucky on offense and sloppy on defense, South Korea lost to Ivory Coast 4-0 in England on Saturday in their first match of the World Cup year. Evann Guessand, Simon Adingra, Martial Godo, and Wilfried Singo each scored for the 35th-ranked African side at Stadium MK in Milton Keynes, northwest of London, while Oh Hyeon-gyu, Seol Young-woo, and Lee Kang-in each found the woodwork for the losing side.
According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korea, ranked 22nd globally and coached by Hong Myung-bo, will next face 25th-ranked Austria in Vienna on Tuesday. South Korea's starting lineup was missing longtime stalwart Son Heung-min, who had been under the weather. Son was subbed on in the 58th minute, along with Lee, the team's top playmaker who had been dealing with a recent ankle injury, but they failed to make an impact. In their absence, Besiktas forward Oh Hyeon-gyu and Stoke City winger Bae Jun-ho led the attack, with Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Hwang Hee-chan starting on the left wing.
Hong's back-three formation included Seol and Kim Moon-hwan as wingbacks, flanking the central trio of Kim Tae-hyeon, Cho Yu-min, and Kim Min-jae. Park Jin-seob and Kim Jin-gyu started as midfielders, with Jo Hyeon-woo guarding the goal. South Korea attempted to breach the opposing defense with quick passes and off-ball movements early in the game, with Hwang launching a dangerous shot from the left side of the box in the 12th minute. Eight minutes later, Oh's left-footed shot struck the right post.
Ivory Coast gained momentum and dominated possession in the latter part of the first half, leading to the opening goal in the 35th minute. Godo passed to Guessand, who scored with a right-footed shot. Jo made crucial saves to keep the score 1-0, turning aside shots from Jean Michael Seri and Emmanuel Agbadou. Seol nearly leveled the score in the 42nd minute, but his shot hit the right post. Adingra doubled Ivory Coast's lead a minute into added time with a quick spin and shot.
Despite substitutions, South Korea couldn't close the gap. Ivory Coast extended their lead to 3-0 in the 62nd minute after a corner, with Godo scoring on a rebound. South Korea hit the post for the third time in the 76th minute, with Lee's shot bouncing off the woodwork. Singo completed the scoring for Ivory Coast just before the final whistle. Ivory Coast outshot South Korea 8-2, with a closer shot attempt margin of 13-12.