World Cup 2014 Team Spotlight – South Korea
Korea has been one of the most successful Asian teams having participated in the last 8 World Cups. In 2002 they co hosted with Japan though it was still a surprise that they stormed their way to a 4th place finish. [ad-1519080]
Korea
Group H: Russia, Belgium, Korea Republic, Algeria
Odds to Win Group: +600
Odds to Win World Cup: +30000
Group Stage Schedule
June 17 vs. Russia
June 22 vs. Algeria
June 26 vs. Belgium
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World Cup History
That and 2010 in South Africa are the only times they have made it past the group stage.
Expectations are not overly high for this year.
Strengths
The Koreans like to try and catch opponents off guard with long balls leading to a lot of scoring chances.
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They do have a few players playing outside of Asia and they are going to have to lean on. They do tend to play with a high level of intensity and enthusiasm that they force their opponents to match even if their overall talent is light.
They are going to need a few bounces to go their way and won’t have the crowd behind them like they did in 2002.
Weaknesses
Korea used an amazing amount of players in qualifying matches as they were seeking the right combinations to bring to Brazil. In those matches they gave up a lot of early goals which given that the quality of competition in Asia was OK but will likely cost them dearly at event like this.
They are the second lowest ranked team in the tournament and those rankings are often foretelling.
Key Player – Son Heung Min
If Korea is going to be even respectable in this event Min is going to have to be a name we hear a lot about.
He plays his futbol in Germany and is known for his ability to score and create chances for his teammates. He hit the back of the net 10 times for Bayer Leverkusen but there is a great possibility that club team is more talented than Korea.
He is going to need to be a star
Prediction – 3rd Group H
The Koreans will always get an A for effort but other than stealing a draw I don’t expect much from them in this tournament.
Their games may be exciting though as they are willing to take chances…and give them up in turn.
