Korea Republic vs Sri Lanka
Korea Republic are ready to resume their World Cup 2022 qualifying campaign during this international break. They will face their toughest test in Group H as they travel to Pyongyang to face fierce rivals North Korea.
But before that, they must first play host to Sri Lanka, who find themselves at the bottom of the group after two matches.
The World Cup 2022 odds are overwhelmingly in the Taeguk Warriors’ favour in this matchup against the group minnows. And clearly, it would be a major upset if they don’t come away with all three points at home.
Talking Points
South Korea got their qualifying campaign off to a strong start last month when they took care of Turkmenistan 2-0 away from home. Na Sang-ho and Jung Woo-young supplied the goals for the Koreans.
That match saw the end of Hwang Ui-jo’s run of consecutive games with a goal for his national side at three. The Bordeaux forward had scored in friendlies against Australia, Iran, and Georgia, where he had both goals in a surprising 2-2 draw. He also scored his second goal of the season for Bordeaux in their recent 3-1 win over Toulouse.
Hwang has been in impressive goalscoring form for his country. Of his 10 career international goals, nine have come over the last year. And the in-form striker will no doubt be aiming to produce some World Cup 2022 highlights.
His emergence has helped take the pressure off of Korean captain Son Heung-Min to supply the goals for the team. The Tottenham Hotspur star, who has scored 24 times for his country in 83 appearances, has scored just once for his country since getting two in the 2018 World Cup. That lone goal came in a 2-1 win against Colombia in a friendly back in March.
That win was one of several strong results during manager Paulo Bento’s first year-plus in charge of Korea Republic. Under their Portuguese boss, the Koreans have won 11 of their 18 matches, with six draws and a lone defeat, which came against eventual champions Qatar in the quarter-finals of the Asian Cup.
Bento’s Korea Republic have looked particularly solid defensively. Prior to their surprising draw against Georgia, they hadn’t conceded more than one goal in a single match one other time under Bento. That came in another 2-2 draw against Panama last October.
Bento and his side will expect to claim all three points when they host a struggling Sri Lanka side that’s lost its four matches in a row. The Golden Lions dropped their first two matches at home against Turkmenistan (0-2) and North Korea (0-1). They were also thumped in recent friendlies by UAE (5-1) and Malaysia (6-0).
Sri Lanka coach Mohamed Nizam Packeer Ali is aiming toward the future, with Niresh Sundararaj, Jude Supan and Manaram Perera among the more promising youngsters gaining valuable experience.
Clearly, the Sri Lankans will face an uphill battle just to avoid defeat in Hwaseong, much less claim all three points. The Golden Lions have won just twice since the start of 2016.
History
South Republic and Sri Lanka have squared off just twice on the football pitch in their history. The first came all the way back in 1979, with the Koreans coming out on top, 6-0. The other was in 1986 as the Koreans once again ran out 4-0 winners.
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