Guadalupe: South Korea finished third in their group at the FIFA World Cup following a 1-0 loss to South Africa in northeastern Mexico on Wednesday, sending their status for the knockout round into limbo. Thapelo Maseko scored for South Africa in the 63rd minute and South Korea failed to respond at Estadio Monterrey, as they suffered their second defeat in Group A.
According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korea, ranked world No. 25, finished third with three points from a win and two losses. The Taegeuk Warriors earlier defeated the Czech Republic 2-1 but fell to Mexico 1-0. Mexico clinched the top spot in Group A with that victory, and South Korea needed a win or a draw against 60th-ranked South Africa to join Mexico in the round of 32 as the Group A runner-up.
However, South Africa leapfrogged South Korea to second place, while Mexico beat Czechia 3-0 to finish a perfect run through the group stage. With this year's tournament featuring 48 nations, up from the previous 32, the top two teams from each of the 12 groups earn automatic spots in the knockouts, along with the eight best third-place teams.
With Groups A, B, and C having completed their play, South Korea are fourth among third-place teams. The group stage will conclude Saturday with teams in Groups J, K, and L in action across the United States. The goal difference is the first tiebreaker, followed by goals scored.
If South Korea progress to the knockouts as the third seed out of Group A, they will either play Germany, the Group E winner, at Boston Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, or face the Group G winner at Seattle Stadium in Seattle. After two matches, Egypt lead Group G with four points, with Iran (two points), Belgium (two points), and New Zealand (one point) behind them. All but New Zealand have a chance to win the group when they finish up play Friday.
South Korea and South Africa were goalless in the first half. Captain Son Heung-min was not in the starting lineup for South Korea after making 12 consecutive World Cup starts since his debut in 2014. Oh Hyeon-gyu took Son's spot as the striker, backed by Lee Kang-in and Hwang Hee-chan as attacking midfielders.
Center back Kim Min-jae wore the skipper's armband, and he nearly put South Korea on the board less than two minutes into the match. Lee delivered a fine cross toward Kim, whose fierce header was blocked on the line by defender Aubrey Modiba. Lee threatened to score on eight minutes, with his left-footed effort from inside the penalty area sailing just right of the target.
After a bright start for South Korea, South Africa started pushing back with some counterattack opportunities. In the 19th minute, Thapelo Maseko nearly had an open look, only to have his shot blocked by defender Lee Gi-hyuk. South Africa then pounced on an opponent turnover at the half-hour mark, but neither Thalente Mbatha nor Evidence Makgopa could solve goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu.
Maseko went on another rapid break in the 39th minute but airmailed his left-footed shot well above the target. South Africa had 10 shot attempts to South Korea's four in the first half, and enjoyed a 3-0 edge in shots on target.
Son came off the bench to replace Hwang Hee-chan on the left wing to begin the second half. Midfielders Kim Jin-gyu and Jens Castrop also came on, with the two offensive-minded players taking over from defense-oriented Paik Seung-ho and Lee Tae-seok.
Despite these aggressive substitutions by South Korea, South Africa had the first chance after the restart, with Maseko getting into the box but unable to get a shot off with Castrop and Lee Han-beom on top of him. South Korea had their first attempt on target on 60 minutes, though Oh only managed a weak header off a Seol Young-woo cross and goalkeeper Ronwen Williams made a comfortable save.
South Africa broke through three minutes later, with Maseko burying a Tshepang Moremi pass with a left-footed finish from the center of the box. The ball found the bottom right-hand corner, just out of Kim Seung-gyu's reach. Forward Cho Gue-sung replaced Oh in the 74th minute but he didn't prove to be the answer for South Korea's static offense, either.
South Korea had one last opportunity during stoppage time, but Park Jin-seob failed to put his head on a cross by Castrop as Williams caught the ball behind him. South Africa finished with 13 shot attempts, five more than South Korea. The winning side also enjoyed a 4-3 advantage in shots on target.