South Korea defeated Singapore 7-0 behind multi-goal performances from Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur) and Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain) in the fifth match of Group C of the North American World Cup Asia Second Qualifying Round on Saturday afternoon at The National Stadium in Singapore. With the victory, South Korea, which improved to 4-1-1 (13 points) in its second round qualifying campaign, will advance to the third round regardless of the outcome of its Game 6 match against China on Nov. 11 at 8 p.m. at Seoul World Cup Stadium.
South Korea, which has yet to name a permanent head coach, has handed the reins to Kim Do-hoon, who coached Singapore’s prestigious Ryan City in 2021 and 2022, on an interim basis. South Korea, who boast an overseas-based attacking lineup that includes Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in, aggressively attacked the Singapore defense from the start of the match, eventually opening the scoring in the ninth minute. Lee Kang-in took a pass from Lee Min-kyu (Ulsan Hyundai), beat a defender on the right side of the penalty box and rattled the net with a powerful right-footed shot. After assisting on the first goal, Lee added a second in the 20th minute. 온라인카지노 Kim Jin-soo (Jeonbuk Hyundai) finished a cross from the left flank with a header for his A-Match debut.
With the score 2-0 at halftime, South Korea broke down the Singapore defense early in the second half. Son Heung-min opened the scoring with a right-footed shot from near the penalty arc in the eighth minute of the second half, followed a minute later by Lee Kang-in’s fourth goal of the tournament, finishing with his left foot off a ball from Lee Min-gyu.
Son Heung-min scored the decisive goal 11 minutes into the second half when he took a pass from Lee Jae-sung (Mainz) and curled it in with his right foot from the left side of the penalty box. In the 34th minute, Bae Junho (Stoke City), who made his A-match debut on the day, scored his debut goal, and Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton) added to the lead with a left-footed shot in the 37th minute.
South Korea’s seven goals against Singapore were scored by five different strikers, with In-Jin Kyu and Bae Junho making their A-match debuts. The victory over Singapore was a welcome change of pace for the national team, who were knocked out of the Asian Cup in the quarterfinals in February and the subsequent firing of former coach Jürgen Klinsmann.
South Korea, who will be looking to qualify for their 11th consecutive World Cup, dating back to Mexico 1986, will host the third Asian qualifier for the North American Championship in September.