|
Scouting
Report
Style of play: South Korea plays with a 3-5-2
formation, but considering its weakness at the back,
coach Guus Hiddink will likely change to a more traditional
4-4-2 line up with a flat-back four. South Korea uses
its bottomless reserve of energy to play a very fast
type of soccer. The South Koreans use short passes and
quick foot speed in midfield to wear down their opponents.
But for all that speed and stamina, they lack technical
skill and are very unsure in front of goal. As a result,
they take a lot of shots from outside of the penalty
area and rely on quick set-pieces for the bulk of their
goals.
Strengths:
Home field advantage -- Playing before its own
fans means South Korea will have an automatic advantage
over opponents the moment its players step onto the
pitch.
Japan factor -- As World Cup co-hosts with Japan,
South Korea will be looking to outperform and upstage
its Asian compatriots on soccer's greatest stage with
the eyes of the sporting world watching.
Team unity -- South Korea is considered an enormous
underdog at the World Cup. As a result, the squad has
come together as a single unit, displaying an abundance
of team spirit and a deep reservoir of resolve.
Weaknesses:
Skilled players -- South Korea don't have enough
skilled players to compete against powerful sides like
Portugal. The majority of South Korea's players make
their living in the mediocre Japanese league, where
the quality of play is suspect. Hence, South Korea will
be grossly overmatched in all three of its games.
Defence -- Aside from veteran Hong Myung-Bo,
South Korea doesn't have a single defender with any
kind of pedigree. Opposing forwards and attacking midfielders
will have an easy time penetrating and picking apart
South Korea's beleaguered defence.
Depth -- Coach Hiddink will have a hard time
fielding a starting 11 that can even come close to competing
on the pitch. Should any of his regular starters go
down with an injury, he'll be hard-pressed to replace
them with a suitable substitute.
Key injuries/omissions:
No injuries to report
Outlook: In five previous World Cup appearances,
South Korea has been outscored 43-11 and is winless
in 14 games. That won't change at this year's tournament.
Fate has not been kind to the South Koreans; they have
been drawn into Group D with Portugal (one of the favourites
to win the tournament), Poland and the United States.
Winning a game seems beyond its capabilities - scoring
a goal may even take some doing - and they will need
divine intervention to even secure a tie against these
powerful soccer nations. Anything other than a fourth
place finish would be a surprise, as the co-hosts are
expected to exit the tournament after the first group
stage with three losses.
The
Country
Location: Eastern Asia, southern half of the
Korean Peninsula bordering the Sea of Japan and the
Yellow Sea
Capital: Seoul
Area: 98,480 sq km
Population: 47,470,969 (July 2000 est.)
Government type: Republic
Climate: Temperate, with rainfall heavier in
summer than winter.
Ethnic groups: Homogeneous (except for about
20,000 Chinese).
Religions: Christian 49%, Buddhist 47%, Confucianist
3%, Shamanist, Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way),
and other 1%.
Languages: Korean, with English widely taught
in junior high and high school.
History: After World War II, Korea was split
into two halves: a communist government was installed
in the north, a republican government in the south.
Between 1950 and 1953, the U.S. and other UN forces
intervened to defend South Korea from North Korean and
Chinese attacks; an armistice was signed in 1953. Following
the war, South Korea achieved amazing economic growth,
with per capita income rising to 13 times the level
of North Korea. In 1997, it suffered severe financial
crisis, but continues to make a solid recovery.
The Community in Canada
Tae-yon Whang came to Toronto in 1948 as a medical intern. He was the first recorded Korean to settle in Canada. As of December 2000, the Korean community in Canada totalled 140,896, with about 80,000 in Ontario, most of them in the Toronto area. About 50,000 Koreans have settled in British Columbia and Alberta. There are about 3,000 Koreans in Montreal and about 1,300 in the Ottawa capital region.
Perhaps Korea and Japan got the idea to co-host the world cup from the stretch of Bloor St. West in Toronto where Korean-Japanese restaurants and groceries are a common sight. But then again, maybe not.
Andy Oh of the Sejong Korean/Japanese Restaurant explained what he perceived to be community interest in the World Cup: "Yes, you could say that soccer is the most popular sport in Korea but it's not like in Japan. In Japan, they nurture the young players very early and send them to Brazil to train - not so in Korea. Here in Toronto, there are several Korean Youth and Adult leagues, but it's been mostly informal - only official now for one year."
He expects the tournament will bring a lot of attention to the Korean community in Canada, but he says they're all working too hard to spend too much time watching the games. In any event, watching the games is more likely to be a family affair rather than something taking place in public. Still, a few walnut cakes while watching the game could turn into quite the tradition.
And as soon as South Korea defeated Poland in its first game, though, a few flags became unfurled in the neighbourhood, as the community seemed to sense that it was making the most of its opportunity on the world stage.
|
