Korea to play Haiti in pre-World Cup friendly on July 8

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Korea to play Haiti in pre-World Cup friendly on July 8

Published: 30 May. 2023, 17:02

The Korean women's national team celebrates during a friendly against Zambia at Yongin Mir Stadium in Yongin, Gyeonggi on April 11. [YONHAP]

The Korean women’s national team will play what could be their final match before the 2023 World Cup against Haiti on July 8 in Korea, two weeks before the tournament begins on July 20 in Australia and New Zealand, the Korea Football Association (KFA) announced on Tuesday.

Haiti, ranked at No. 53 on the FIFA rankings, booked a spot at the World Cup after beating Senegal and Chile in the inter-confederation playoffs.

Taeguk Ladies manager Colin Bell said that the friendly with Haiti will be a chance to test out the players’ stamina and his tactics, and it will allow them to play their first group stage game against Colombia in the best form.

The friendly will also serve as an opportunity for Bell to pick the final 23 players for the World Cup.

Bell will first call up players for the friendly in June and train with the team, prior to announcing the final World Cup squad shortly before the tournament.

The Taeguk Ladies displayed improvements in two friendlies last month against Zambia, after a disappointing Arnold Clark Cup in February which ended with three losses against England, Belgium and Italy.

Korea beat Zambia 5-2 in the first friendly and thrashed them 5-0 in the second friendly.

The national team will fly to Australia two days after the friendly with Haiti and may play another friendly in Australia, as the KFA is trying to arrange a match right before the World Cup.

The Taeguk Ladies will play their first group stage game against Colombia on July 25, followed by second game with Morocco on July 30 and third with Germany on Aug. 3.

This year’s World Cup is a chance for them to redeem themselves from the previous World Cup, where they suffered three losses in the group stage.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]