South Korea Beat Czechia 2-1 to Take 3 Points

In the 2026 FIFA World Cup Group A match, South Korea beat Czech Republic 2-1 to start the tournament with a victory. The match played at Estadio Akron in Zapopan was watched by 44,985 spectators. All goals were scored in the second half in the match that ended goalless in the first half.

It was South Korea who fell behind in the match. In the 59th minute, team captain Ladislav Krejci converted Vladimir Coufal's assist to make it 1-0 in favour of Czechia. This goal pushed South Korea to increase pressure to save themselves from a poor start. In the 62nd minute, Hong Myung-Bo substituted Lee Jae-Sung off and brought Hwang Hee-Chan on.

The equaliser came in the 67th minute. Meeting the ball through Lee Kang-In's assist, Hwang In-Beom made it 1-1. South Korea took complete control of the game after this goal. In the 69th minute, head coach Hong took off Lee Tae-Seok and Son Heung-Min and brought on Eom Ji-Sung and Oh Hyeon-Gyu.

In the 77th minute, Tomas Soucek put the ball into the net but the goal was disallowed for offside. In the 80th minute, the name who put South Korea ahead became clear in the moment he entered the game: meeting the ball through Hwang In-Beom's assist, Oh Hyeon-Gyu made it 2-1. This goal completely changed the course of the match.

The match statistics clearly reflected South Korea's superiority. Expected goals (xG) South Korea 2.00 to Czechia 0.81; possession 62% to 38%; total shots 15 to 8; big chances 4 to 1; touches in the opposition box 23 to 11.

In the 90+6, Lee Gi-Hyuk was shown a yellow card for pushing. Egyptian referee Omar Artan officiated the match. This victory carried South Korea to a good position in Group A with 3 points; Czech Republic remained on 0 points in the tournament opener.

Image: hurriyet.com.tr