Advocaat barely had a chance to get to know his squad
Outright percentages : 250/1
Group G Winners : 10/1
South Korea shocked the football world 4 years ago when they beat Italy and Spain to reach the semi-finals of the 2002 World Cup. It was a outstanding achievement. In the group stage, an opening match win over Poland and a shock 1-0 victory over Portugal ensured they became the 1st Asian team to qualify from the group stage since Saudi Arabia in 1994.
In the second round they defeated Italy in additional time, a result which saw winning goal scorer Ahn Jung-Hwan sacked by his companies at Serie A club Perugia. They edged past Spain on penalties in the quarter final before a narrow 1-0 defeat against Germany in the semis brought their fairytale run to an end.
expectations have risen significantly since that point and Guus Hiddink is a hard act to follow. During qualification Korea went thru 2 coaches before fellow Dutchman Dick Advocaat usurped in preparation for the finals in Germany.
South Korea were some distance from convincing during qualification and Hiddkink’s inheritor, HUmberto Coelho, lasted just two qualifying matches. He resigned after a bad goalless draw against the Maldives whose recent pedigree encompasses a 12-0 defeat to Syria and 17-0 hammering against Iran.
Jo Bonfrere took control of and notwithstanding guiding the team to their 5th successive World Cup finals, quit in August 2005 following lacklustre performances. Korea finished as runners up in their qualifying group but endured home and away defeats to Saudi Arabia and an away draw to lowly Uzbekistan.
While Hiddink enjoyed almost half a season with the team four years ago in preparation for the 2002 finals, Advocaat, in contrast, has barely had a chance to begin to know his squad.
South Korea will not be seen as an unassessed quantity and a number of players are excelling at club level in Europe. Hiddink took a number of quality players with him to PSV Eindoven following the last competition while Park Ji-Sung secured a move to Manchester United.
it can also be debated that Korea have struggled defensively since some of their vet defenders retired since the last World Cup. Particularly former captain and defensive lynchpin Myung Bo Hong who participated in the 1990, 1994, 1998 and 2002 finals, ultimately retiring with 135 caps.
counseled Bet
Following a remarkable run four years back, South Korea could go back to their old ways of not making it past the group stage. Expectancy is at abest-ever record} high but they could suffer from a shock against Togo in their opening match who might be good enough for a draw.
Togo vs South Korea draw 9/4.
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In: Uncategorized · Tagged with: Advocaat, Seoul, South Korea, World Cup