#广场预测世界杯赢40000U

Infected by the Chinese national team? -- Facing a "draw means advancement," South Korea lost again.

Once upon a time, "draw means advancement + habitual choke" was China's signature combo, and now South Korea seems to have caught it. In the final Group A match of the 2026 World Cup group stage, South Korea faced South Africa. Facing the favorable situation of "a draw means advancement," South Korea lost 0-1 to South Africa.

Meanwhile, in the other Group A match, the Czech Republic lost 0-3 to Mexico.

With that, the Group A standings were finalized. One of the host nations, Mexico, secured three consecutive wins and advanced as group leaders, while South Africa, relying on their victory over South Korea in the final group match, jumped to second place and advanced.

After the first two rounds, South Korea had beaten the Czech Republic 2-1 and lost narrowly to Mexico 0-1, sitting second in the group with 1 win and 1 loss (3 points). South Africa, on the other hand, lost 0-2 to Mexico and drew 1-1 with the Czech Republic, sitting third with 1 point. This meant that as long as South Korea remained unbeaten, they would secure second place and advance to the round of 32.

Facing the situation of "a draw means advancement," South Korea head coach Hong Myung-bo said: "The players have shown enough in the first two games. So I will tell them that because this is the last game and an important one, they should face it with more confidence and mutual trust." Kim Min-jae, meanwhile, said: "If the whole South Korean team plays like they did in the first two games, I think they can win."

The biggest change for South Korea in this match was that they did not put Son Heung-min in the starting lineup. Before this game, Son Heung-min had started for South Korea in 12 consecutive World Cup matches. This was also the first time Son Heung-min had lost his starting role in a World Cup match since 2014.

In contrast, South Africa faced a shortage of personnel. Their midfield core, Mokwana, who scored a crucial penalty in the previous match against Mexico, was suspended due to two yellow cards. Veteran Zwané was also suspended due to a red card. Both missed this crucial match.

Looking at historical encounters, South Korea's record against African teams on the World Cup stage is not ideal—4 matches, only 1 win, 1 draw, and 2 losses. Their only victory dates back to the 2006 match against Togo.

In the first half, neither side managed to score. South Africa had 10 shots with 3 on target, while South Korea had 4 shots with 1 on target. However, for the most part, South Korea controlled possession, boasting 61% ball possession in the first half.

The most threatening attack of the first half came in the 30th minute when South Africa's Mbatha's long-range shot was saved by Kim Seung-gyu, followed by Makhopa's close-range rebound, which was again collected by Kim Seung-gyu. Kim's double save kept South Korea's goal intact in the first half.

At the start of the second half, South Korea made three substitutions at once: Son Heung-min, Kim Jin-kyu, and Castro came off the bench, replacing Hwang Hee-chan, Paik Seung-ho, and Lee Tae-seok.

However, it was South Africa who scored first in the second half. In the 63rd minute, Moremi, who had come on just one minute earlier, completed a long pass, and Maseko fired a shot from the right side of the box into the net, giving South Africa a 1-0 lead.

After conceding, South Korea mounted a relentless comeback, but they lacked a finishing touch and ultimately failed to equalize.