It was a disappointing loss against Honduras.
Kim Eun-joong’s U-20 national team drew 2-2 with Honduras on Saturday (June 26) at the Mendoza Stadium in Mendoza, Argentina, in their second Group F match of the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2023.메이저사이트
With one win, one draw and four points, South Korea sits in second place behind Gambia (six points). They have secured at least third place, with third-place Honduras (1 point) and fourth-place France (0 points) below them. With some points on the board, a third-place finish would still get them into the round of 16. Not a bad situation.
More disappointing than the result was the loss of goalkeeper Kim Jun-hong and starting center back Choi Seok-hyun for the next game. Kim Jun-hong was shown a yellow card for stalling in the buildup to a goal kick in second-half stoppage time. After picking up one yellow card in the last match against France, Kim will be unavailable for the next three matches. In this tournament, two yellow cards will result in a player missing the next match. The absence of Kim Jun-hong, who is the starting goalkeeper, is obviously bad news for South Korea.
Source | Korea Football Association
Choi Seok-hyun was sent off for accumulating cautions. He was cautioned twice in the second half alone. A yellow card in the 36th minute for contesting an aerial ball was unnecessary. The challenge was near the halfway line and not in the danger zone. The foul in the final minute of added time was necessary to prevent a counterattack. Choi Seok-hyun was a regular starter as Kim Ji-soo’s partner at center back.
South Korea will not be able to field its full-strength lineup against The Gambia on Monday, which will determine whether they advance to the round of 16. A win against Honduras would have been fine, but we’re still not 100% sure we’ll make the round of 16. It’s disappointing.
In addition to the two players, Park Chang-woo and Cho Young-kwang also received yellow cards in the match. They are still young players, and their fouls and card management are still inexperienced. They will need to improve in the third round of the tournament.