It’s been less than a year since the World Cup in Qatar came to a close. Two years and seven months remain until the 2026 World Cup in North and Central America. The ‘World Cup Journey’ begins again.
South Korean soccer takes the first step toward qualifying for its 11th consecutive World Cup. The Republic of Korea will take on Singapore on Saturday at 8 p.m. at Seoul World Cup Stadium in the first leg of the 2026 North and Central American World Cup Asia Second Qualifying Round. It will be the first time South Korea has played Singapore in an A match in 33 years, since September 1990. South Korea leads the head-to-head series with 21 wins, three draws and two losses. They haven’t lost since a friendly in August 1968.
Singapore is ranked 155th by the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). That’s 131 places below the 24th-ranked South Korea, which is “not comparable”. Of course, the soccer ball is round. Jürgen Klinsmann is on high alert. “I don’t think we’re underdogs at all,” he said on the 15th, a day before the first match. I went to Singapore and watched a professional team. I saw them beat a strong Korean team. I felt that it was a warning to the national team.” “We have to prepare seriously and seriously, not thinking that we will win. They have the ability to score from set pieces and counterattacks. We will take the game more seriously than ever.” 보스토토
He was in Singapore on Aug. 8 to analyze the power of the national team and watched Jeonbuk Hyundai’s fourth-leg Asian Champions League (ACL) match against the national team. Jeonbuk lost 0-2 to Lions City that day. But the fans had a different perspective. Klinsmann called up his most elite squad, including Son Heung-min (Tottenham), Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich), Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), and Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton).
“When the defense is down, it’s not easy for any team. There are no right answers in football. I hope we can create chances early and make it easy for ourselves, and I believe we can score a lot of goals. I believe in our ability.” Hwang Hee-chan added: “We will prepare to score as many goals as we can. It’s our last A-match in Korea this year, so we’ll try to show our best.”
Everything starts with a good first step. After Singapore, the Klinsmanns will fly to China for their second match against China at the Shenzhen Universiade Sports Center on the 21st at 9pm. A ‘goal storm’ is also needed to prepare for the Qatar Asian Cup next January.
