Korea can seal World Cup knockout spot in decisive Group A finale

Korea will close out their Group A play at the FIFA World Cup against South Africa this week in northeastern Mexico, with a spot in the knockout phase at stake.

The kickoff at Monterrey Stadium in Guadalupe, near Monterrey, is 7 p.m. Wednesday or 10 a.m. Korea will try to reach the knockouts for the fourth time in their World Cup history, following 2002, 2010 and 2022.

The two other teams in the group, Mexico and the Czech Republic, will go toe-to-toe at the same time in Mexico City.

Mexico, one of three co-hosts of the tournament, clinched the top spot in Group A and became the first team of this year's competition to grab a knockout berth by defeating  Korea 1-0 last Thursday. They lead the way with six points and hold a tiebreak edge over Korea even if they finish with the same point total.

Korea, which began the tournament with a 2-1 win over the Czech Republic on June 11, have three points. The Czech Republic and South Africa each have one point, with the European side holding a tiebreak advantage in goal difference.

The three teams other than Mexico all have a chance to progress to the knockout stage, but Korea is the only team of the trio to control their own destiny.

Korea will finish second in Group A with a win or a draw against South Africa, regardless of the outcome of the Mexico-Czech Republic match. The Czech Republic may end up tying Korea in points, but Korea hold the tiebreak edge thanks to their opening victory two weeks ago.

This year's tournament features a record 48 nations, up from 32. The top two teams from each of the 12 groups will earn automatic knockout berths, and the eight best third-place teams will also progress to the next stage.

Korea may be able to sneak into the round of 32 as Group A's No. 3 team if they lose to South Africa and Mexico beat or have a draw against the Czech Republic.

However, if both South Korea and Mexico lose, then Korea will be eliminated as the last-place team in Group A.

Korea, at No. 25 in the last FIFA rankings released before the World Cup, will be the favorite against 60th-ranked South Africa. And with South Africa having conceded a goal inside the first 10 minutes in each of their first two contests, Korea will try to get off to a quick start before their opposing defenders get settled in.

Korea hasn't exactly been world-beaters on offense, though. They failed to score in the first half in their first two matches, unable to translate their strong possession numbers into goals.

Korea head coach Hong Myung-bo has come under fire for his usage of captain Son Heung-min, who was subbed out during the second half in both of the earlier games.

Son was taken out in the 69th minute against the Czech Republic, having failed to convert on his six shot attempts. Son's replacement, Oh Hyeon-gyu, scored the go-ahead goal, and Hong's decision to make the switch was hailed as brilliant.

The coach was even more aggressive with his substitutions against Mexico and replaced Son with Oh in the 57th minute. Unlike in the first match, Oh and the rest of Korea failed to score, leading many to second-guess Hong's early removal of Son.

Son started as a striker in both games, rather than as a more natural left winger.

Despite persistent talks of his decline in the weeks leading up to the World Cup, Son still drew a great deal of attention from opposing defenders, which in turn created extra space for his teammates to roam. That just hasn't led to goals, and time is running out on Son to leave his stamp on his fourth and possibly final World Cup.

South Africa will be without their two most experienced outfield players. Midfielder Themba Zwane was sent off during the Mexico match two weeks ago, and FIFA later slapped a three-match ban on the 36-year-old. Another midfielder, Teboho Mokoena, picked up his second yellow card in two matches during a 1-1 draw against the Czech Republic last week and is thus ineligible against Korea.

Yonhap