South Korea beats the Czech Republic after coming from behind

After an hour, South Korea seemed to be losing control of the match they had previously dominated. Following a long throw-in, captain Ladislav Krejci headed the Czech team into the lead from close range. But South Korea was able to respond: Eight minutes after the 0-1, Hwang In-Beom equalized with a brilliant individual effort and the Asians’ 13th shot on goal to make it 1-1. And another 13 minutes later, In-Beom set up the winning goal perfectly for Oh Hyeongyu, who had just come on as a substitute, with yet another brilliant move.

In-Beom with a “home advantage”

Hwang In-Beom undoubtedly emerged as the man of the match, which somehow felt fitting. In-Beom grew up in Daejeon, the sister city of Guadalajara. He began his overseas career in North America (Vancouver). From there, his path took him to Russia, back to his homeland, and finally to Greece, Serbia, and, two years ago, to Feyenoord Rotterdam. He has been playing there for two years—longer than anywhere else.

The South Koreans face Mexico next Friday—a showdown between the first two winners of this World Cup. The Czechs, on the other hand, are hoping that the tournament in North America will go exactly the opposite way from their last World Cup appearance 20 years ago in Germany. Back then, the Czechs won their opening match against the U.S. but were eliminated after the group stage.

South Korea – Czech Republic 2:1 (0:0)

Estadio Guadalajara. – 44,985 spectators. – Referee: Omar. – Goals: 59. Krejčí 0–1. 67. Hwang In-Beom 1–1. 80. Oh Hyeon-Gyu 2–1.