South Korea fans were left in tears as super sub Hee-Chan Hwang scored a dramatic injury-time winner against Portugal to keep them in the tournament. The Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan was overawed with emotion as South Korea did all they could to keep themselves in Qatar. However, the drama wasn’t over there as they had to sit and wait until the end of the Ghana vs Uruguay game to determine their fate. Uruguay managed to secure a 2-0 victory in the end over Ghana but it wasn’t enough for them as Heung-Min Son and co. secured their spot into the last 16. So, here’s our South Korea player ratings for their emotional win over Portugal.
South Korea (4-3-3):
Seung-Gyu Kim – 7
Had an incredibly busy first half, making a host of saves to deny the likes of Joao Cancelo, Cristiano Ronaldo and Diogo Dalot. Had less to do in the second half but put in a solid display here.
Moon-Hwan Kim – 6.5
Cancelo got the better of him in the opening 15 minutes but he was able to deal with the threat better as the game went on.
Kyung-Won Kwon – 7
Made a couple of good interceptions and was solid defensively overall.
Young-Gwon Kim – 7.5
Showed a good piece of defending to stop a dangerous ball into the box after the first quarter of the match. Scored South Korea’s equalizer from a corner, converting from close range.
Jin-Su Kim – 6.5
Got caught in the build-up to Portugal’s opener being beaten by Diogo Dalot down the flank but improved in the second half.
Woo-Young Jung – 7
Made a couple of nice passes early on and created a couple of chances too.
In-Beom Hwang – 6.5
Played a good ball into the box at the end of the first half.
Kang-In Lee – 6
Helped progress play from the middle a couple of times and also played a smart through ball into Heung-Min Son in the first half. Booked for a late challenge on Vitinha.
Jae-Sung Lee – 4
Did very little to impose himself on the match before he was subbed off for Hee-Chan Hwang in the second half.
Gue-Sung Cho – 6.5
Led the press well and put himself about, trying to make things happen, especially in the air. Played Heung-Min Son in behind with a good ball in the second half.
Heung-Min Son – 8
Led the counter attack and played a perfectly timed pass into Hee-Chan Hwang for the winner. Showed a good bit of skill and managed a shot on goal to end the first half but it was never truly testing Diogo Costa in between the sticks for Portugal. Switched over to the right flank for the second half and was able to make more of an impact.
Substitutions
Hee-Chan Hwang – 7.5
Looked lively when he came on and scored a dramatic winner in injury time, expertly timing his run and finishing superbly past Diogo Costa.