Don’t Count Out South Korea

In 2002, South Korea defeated traditional European powers Portugal, Spain and Italy to make it to the World Cup semifinals. This impressive run, however, will always have an asterisk next to it because the Taeguk Warriors played on their home soil. In addition to benefiting from a rabid home crowd and easy access to kimchi, many claim that the Koreans were the beneficiaries of some friendly calls by the referees.

The conventional wisdom is that South Korea will have a much harder time on European soil this time around. They won’t have 70,000 fans behind them chanting in unison. They won’t be sleeping in their own beds. The referees won’t be their 12th man. They might have to eat pig intestines instead of kimchi. And on and on.

But the one thing that South Korea will have is talent. Twenty-year-old striker Park Chu-young has torn up the K-League and has shown he can score in international competition. With EPL sides very interested in his skills, he may be the player in this tournament with the most to gain by a strong performance.

Park Ji-sung and Lee Young-pyo, who both used their play in 2002 to land jobs in England, are back with more seasoning than they had 4 years ago. Park Ji-sung could be the key in the middle. He has shown flashes of brilliances at Manchester United but will need to be more consistent for his national side.

If there is a question mark, it is in the backline where Hong Myong-bo, Kim Tae-yong and Choi Jin-cheul have all retired from international duties. Dick Advocaat, brought on as manager after fellow Dutchman Jo Bonfrere was let go following a disappointing showing at the East Asian Cup, will have to get his defense in order in the friendlies leading up to Germany.

South Korea does have a very manageable opening round group with France being its top challenger. The Taeguk Warriors should be favored against Switzerland and Togo.

Will South Korea make the final four? Probably not, but a top eight finish would be every bit as impressive as its 2002 showing and further solidify the team’s claim as the best team in Asia.