Son Heung-min rejoins Korea for big 6-0 win over Vietnam

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Son Heung-min rejoins Korea for big 6-0 win over Vietnam

Published: 17 Oct. 2023, 23:34 Updated: 18 Oct. 2023, 17:21

PAIK JI-HWAN
paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr

Korea's Lee Kang-in, left, dribbles the ball during a friendly with Vietnam at Suwon World Cup Stadium in Suwon, Gyeonggi on Tuesday. [YONHAP]

Korea thrashed Vietnam 6-0 at Suwon World Cup Stadium in Suwon, Gyeonggi on Tuesday, putting in a strong performance to manage the biggest victory yet under manager Jurgen Klinsmann.

Tuesday’s friendly with Vietnam took place just four days after Korea trounced Tunisia 4-0 in western Seoul.

Lee Kang-in puts on a show as Korea beat Tunisia 4-0

Klinsmann did not make significant changes to the starting XI from last week’s match, apart from regular captain Son Heung-min returning to the pitch and goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo starting in lieu of Kim Seung-gyu.

Korea had more ball possession in the early minutes, capitalizing on it to create chances. Lee Kang-in, who scored a brace in last week’s game, was notable again with effective passes that helped the team drive forward.

The Taeguk Warriors also pressed the Vietnamese players hard, giving them no choice but to defend in their own half.

Korea then opened the scoring in the fifth minute with Lee taking a corner kick and center-back Kim Min-jae heading in it — the second goal is as many games managed in almost the exact same way for the duo.

The Taeguk Warriors displayed solid cohesion after their first goal — especially in attack — with Son and Cho Gue-sung making good movements in the build-up process.

The two forwards lacked decisiveness, however, as both missed a few opportunities in front of goal that would have given Korea another reason to celebrate.

Instead it was agile midfielder Hwang Hee-chan that made it 2-0 in the 26th minute after receiving a tidy through-pass from Lee Jae-sung and slotting in the ball inside the penalty area.

Fullback Seol Young-woo was also visible during the first half as he constantly challenged the Vietnamese players and made threatening crosses up the pitch.

No more goals followed in the half and Klinsmann substituted three defenders — everyone but Kim — in the second half, as they seemed a bit shaky despite not conceding a goal.

The second half continued to be one-sided with Korea attempting to further extend their lead.

The third goal followed in the 51st minute after Son made a pass to Cho inside the penalty box and Vietnamese defender Vo Minh Trong scored an own goal while attempting to clear it.

With a 3-0 lead, the victory for Korea seemed guaranteed. Not content with the score, Son also got on the scoresheet in the 51st minute, smashing in a shot after a one-two with Hwang.

The Taeguk Warriors gained an even bigger advantage when Vietnam went one man down as defender Bui Hoang Viet Anh received his second yellow in the 62nd minute.

Lee Kang-in then made it 5-0 after putting the ball into the bottom left corner. He looked for his second and the team’s No. 6, but Jeong Woo-yeong was last to score in the match, tucking in the ball that had a deflection from Lee’s shot right in front of goal.

Tuesday’s 6-0 win was the biggest victory under Klinsmann, although it did come against a fairly weak opponent. Still, improvements in attack were clear compared to his first five games in charge, during which the team managed only four goals.

Last week’s 4-0 win over Tunisia was his first match in charge where the team scored more than two goals.

“Overall, [it was] a very very professional performance by the team,” Klinsmann said after the match. “They stayed focused. They took the energy from the Tunisia game to this game. We were very hardworking and we played exactly the way we trained.”

The FIFA ranking difference — Korea ranked at No. 26 and Vietnam at No. 95 — was visible.

“Today we faced physical challenge,” Vietnamese national team manager Philippe Troussier said. “Tactical challenge. But we were not surprised. We wanted to use this experience and because we are in a process to be a team to prepare our World Cup.

“I was so satisfied about the fact that we tried our best.”

Tuesday’s match wrapped up the October friendlies. The Taeguk Warriors will now prepare for the second round of World Cup qualifiers in November during which they face China, Thailand and Singapore in Group C.

A total of 36 teams, divided into nine groups of four teams compete in the second round, and the nine group winners and runners-up will advance to the third round.

Korea’s first World Cup qualifier is against Singapore on Nov. 16.

Klinsmann will now depart to Europe for a business trip during which he will watch the Bundesliga match between Bayern Munich and Mainz 05 on Saturday to monitor Kim of Bayern and Lee Jae-sung of Mainz.

He will then return to Korea to watch Korean FA Cup semifinals scheduled in November after which he will start preparing for the World Cup qualifiers.

Following the match against Singapore, the Taeguk Warriors will play an away game against China on Nov. 21.

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