Ladies and Gentlemen, please stand for the Selecao. The World Cup 2022 has found its number one favorite after seeing Brazil steamrollering past South Korea in a Round of 16 matchup whose outcome never seemed in doubt.
One of the most sparkling versions of Brazil seen in the past few decades got the job done in the first half already as they put four past an disoriented Korean side. When referee Clement Turpin blew for half time, Paulo Bento’s boys were like, “hey, what did just happen?”
Brazil happened. The Auriverde built a double lead in just 12 minutes, then put two more into poor Kim Seung-gyu’s net to get job done in the first period already. Vinicius, Neymar, Richarlison, Paquetá, all their stars found the back of the net.
It looked like it was just the beginning of a nightmare for the Asian Tigers, but Tite’s side showed some mercy in the second period as they hit the brakes. The Koreans gained a tiny bit of courage and tested Alisson Becker several times, offering the Liverpool goalie more than one chance to shine. Eventually, they were rewarded with Paik Seung-ho’s goal that set the score at 4-1.
It was the perfect night for Brazil, who at full time celebrated their immortal star Pelé, who is currently hospitalized for a chemotherapy evaluation, with a banner. So, where to start?
Let’s start from Neymar Jr., who came back to the pitch after the concerning injury he suffered in the first game with Serbia. O Ney‘s right ankle seemed perfectly fine as he easily buried the spot for Brazil on 12 minutes, converting a penalty awarded for a naive foul from Jung Woo-Young on Richarlison.
When that happened though, the Selecao had already opened the scoring. From the very first occasion, Raphinha dashed past Kim Jin-Su along the right channel and whipped the ball in the area for Vinicius at the far post. The Real Madrid starlet took all the time he needed to take the aim and fire it past the goalkeeper.
Brazil’s third goal was an absolute masterpiece, the essence of the iconic futebol bailado. A ten-second one-touch team combination featuring Marquinhos, Thiago Silva, and Richarlison, who started it and closed with a clinical shot that left no chance to Kim. It was the third goal scored by the Everton jewel so far in this World Cup.
On 40 minutes, Vinicius chipped the ball for Lucas Paquetá, offering the West Ham midfielder an easy chance to make it the scoresheet, which he promptly took advantage of.
At that point, Korea’s only concern was not to concede any more goals but Brazil wisely slowed down and started to preserve their forces ahead of their upcoming Quarter Final with Croatia.
Alisson did his job with a string of spectacular saves, conceding one only with ten minutes to go. That was a well-deserved consolation prize for the Asian Tigers, who had the ill luck of stumbling into a state-of-grace version of Brazil.
MATCH SCORECARD
December 5, 2022 – FIFA World Cup Round of 16
BRAZIL – SOUTH KOREA 4-1
SCORERS: 7′ Vinicius (B), 13′ Neymar (B, pen.), 29′ Richarlison (B), 36′ Paquetà (B), 76′ Paik Seung-Ho (K)
 |
BRAZIL (3-4-3): Alisson (80′ Weverton); Eder Militao (63′ Dani Alves), Thiago Silva, Marquinhos, Danilo (72′ Bremer); Casemiro, Paquetà; Raphinha, Neymar (80′ Rodrygo), Vinicius (72′ Martinelli); Richarlison (Ederson, Antony, Bruno Guimaraes, Everton Ribeiro, Fabinho, Fred, Pedro) Coach: Tite |
 |
SOUTH KOREA (4-3-3): Kim Seung-Gyu; Kim Moon-Hwan, Kim Min-Jae, Kim Young-Gwon, Kim Jin-Su (46′ Hong Chul); Hwang In-Beom (65′ Paik Seung-Ho), Jung Woo-Young (46′ Son Jun-Ho); Hwang Hee-Chan, Lee Jae-Sung (74′ Lee Kang-In), Cho Gue-Sung (80′ Hwang Ui-Jo); Son Heung-Min (Jo Hyeon-Woo, Song Bum-Keun, Cho Yu-Min, Jeong Woo-Yeong, Kim Tae-Hwan, Kwon Chang-Hoon, Kwon Kyung-Won, Na Sang-Ho, Song Min-Kyu, Yoon Jong-Gyu) Coach: Paulo Bento |
NOTES: Yellow Cards: Jung Woo-Young (K); Added Time: 1st Half 5′, 2nd Half 4′
 |
Follow us on Google News for more updates on Serie A and Italian football |