The Taegeuk Warriors made the better start to the contest and went close to taking the lead twice inside the opening quarter of an hour. Lee Han-beom saw a close-range header flash narrowly over the bar to increase the volume inside the ground, before a powerful Lee Kang-in effort from outside the box resulted in an important save from Matej Kovar to keep his side on level terms.
In response, Tomas Soucek fired wide from a good position following a corner just before the first-half hydration break took place.
The remainder of the first half was a slightly more subdued spectacle, but Son Heung-min will certainly feel like he should have broken the deadlock for South Korea after 39 minutes, steering a shot wide in disappointing fashion following a very promising run. With only one shot on target witnessed inside the first 45 minutes, there was a distinct lack of quality in the final third from both sides as the score remained goalless at the interval.
Hong Myung-bo’s team began the second half positively, and Kovář was called into urgent action to deny Hwang In-beom and Lee Jae-sung. The Czech goalkeeper was then required to rescue his side once again after 55 minutes, producing a superb block to prevent Son from edging South Korea in front.
There was always a danger that the latter’s string of missed opportunities could prove costly, and that’s exactly what materialised shortly before the hour mark. A long throw from Vladimír Coufal was met by the head of Czech captain Ladislav Krejci inside the box, and his effort flew past Kim Seung-gyu and into the back of the net to mark his sixth goal for his nation.
However, the Repre’s joy was short-lived, with Kovar finally beaten midway through the second half after a composed strike from Hwang In-beom set up a grandstand finale.
Drama struck with less than a quarter of an hour remaining when Miroslav Koubek’s side thought they had retaken the lead through an excellent Soucek header, but the goal was immediately ruled out for offside.
Just three minutes later and with FT looming, substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu put South Korea in front for the first time in the game after receiving a superb pass from Hwang In-beom and turning the ball home from just a few yards out, despite Kovar’s best efforts.
The action certainly didn’t end there, either. The Czechs continued to look dangerous from set-pieces and a close-range strike from substitute Adam Hlozek was somehow turned around the post by Kim Seung-gyu.
Nevertheless, South Korea held on to claim all three points and put themselves in a strong position ahead of their clash with co-hosts Mexico in their second group match next Friday. Meanwhile, their opponents’ six-match unbeaten streak has come to an end, and they will be desperate to secure their first win of the tournament when they take on South Africa on Thursday.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Lee Kang-in (South Korea)
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