South Korea put in an encouraging performance in their Group H opener as they drew 0-0 with two-time champions Uruguay. Paulo Bento’s men were well organised and limited the quality of the South American side but star man Heung-Min Son struggled to make an impact for his team here. Nonetheless, it was a solid result for South Korea against a Uruguay team filled with well-known names. So, here’s our South Korea player ratings for their draw against Uruguay.
South Korea (4-2-3-1):
Seung-Gyu Kim – 6
Goalkeeper had very little to do with Uruguay having zero shots on target.
Moon-Hwan Kim – 7.5
Was tasked with handling Darwin Nunez and did struggle a little aerially early on. Wasn’t afraid to try and push forward and created the best chance of the game for South Korea with a cross for Ui-Jo Hwang. Improved as the game progressed with a solid defensive performance.
Min-Jae Kim – 7.5
The Napoli man put in a strong performance here. Good bit of defending on Darwin Nunez in the first half, just about doing enough to stop him getting good contact on a ball into the six-yard box. Made a fine block to stop a Rodrigo Bentancur effort from the edge of the box in the opening stages of the second half. Assured in possession.
Young-Gwon Kim – 6.5
Good performance at the back and was decent in the air too.
Jin-Su Kim – 6
Wasn’t afraid to advance forward down the left to support the offense at times. Did well to limit Facundo Pellistri when needed. Decent defensive display.
In-Beom Hwang – 6.5
Looked to get on the ball early on and made a couple of tidy passes. Completed an excellent long range pass for Jin-Su Kim in the opening quarter of an hour. His quality of passing wasn’t the best at times but he did try to make things happen at least.
Woo-Young Jung – 6.5
Put in a number of good challenges and displayed some good defending at end of first half to cut out a ball heading for Luis Suarez. Also played a nice pass into Moon-Hwan Kim in the build up to South Korea’s best chance of the game. Gave away a number of fouls but put in a good shift.
Heung-Min Son – 5
Earning his 105th cap for Korea Republic, he was still recovering from a facial fracture and was wearing a protective mask. Was very quiet in the first half and only marginally improved in the second. Quality wasn’t there today.
Jae-Sung Lee – 5
Dropped a bit deeper in the midfield to get on the ball and battled well but did not do much to impact the game offensively.
Sang-Ho Na – 4
Looked lively in the opening few minutes down the right flank but failed to impact the game after that. Subbed off for Kang-In Lee in the second half.
Ui-Jo Hwang – 3
Squandered South Korea’s best chance of the first half, skying the ball from inside the box despite having time and space on the ball. Poor finish and was rightfully replaced in the second half.
Substitutions
Gue-sung Cho – 6
Looked lively. Decent strike once he came on but dragged it wide in what was one of South Korea’s few attempts.