“Our Performance Today Was Our Lowest Point Yet,” States South Korea Coach Hong Myung-bo

The South Korean national team’s manager, Hong Myung-bo, labelled his squad’s display as their poorest in the current World Cup qualifying campaign, following a 1-1 draw against Oman in Goyang. This result marked their second straight stalemate, having previously drawn 1-1 with Palestine in Amman last November.

Hwang Hee-chan had given the home team a slight edge with a goal in the 41st minute, but their lead was cancelled out late in the match when Ali Al-Busaidi found the back of the net in the 80th minute. The match was further complicated for Korea when Paris Saint-Germain’s Lee Kang-in departed due to an ankle injury.

“This is undoubtedly our most disappointing performance in this qualification round so far,” remarked Hong during the post-match press conference.

“We faced challenges right from the start, particularly due to some new combinations in our lineup… We conceded far too easily, which made it seem like we were not in control of the game, even while we were ahead.“

Hong clarified that bringing Lee onto the pitch was never part of his strategy. The midfielder had only trained for one day, and his insertion was necessitated by an injury to Paik Seung-ho in the 38th minute.

Injury issues cast a shadow over South Korea even before the match began, with Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae ruled out due to Achilles tendinitis and Feyenoord midfielder Hwang In-beom being rested for precautionary reasons following a month on the sidelines with injury.

Captain Son Heung-min chose not to dwell on the draw, despite failing to find the net himself.

“I feel I’ve let my teammates down today, but this isn’t the only match we’ll play together,” Son commented.

“We have managed to create positive opportunities to reach this point. We should aim to learn from this match and take the next steps forward.“

South Korea continues to lead Group B with 15 points, three ahead of Jordan, who moved into second place after a 3-1 victory over Palestine in Amman. The Koreans are set to face Jordan in Suwon on Tuesday.