Second-half targets by Oh Hyeon-gyu and Hwang In-beom steered South Korea to a come-from-behind win over Czechia in a Group A encounter.
Printed On 12 Jun 2026
Hwang In-beom scored a purpose and arrange one other as South Korea rallied to defeat Czechia 2-1 within the second match of the FIFA World Cup 2026 on Thursday evening in Zapopan, Mexico.
After a lacklustre first half through which each groups had been jeered as they left the sector, Czechia took the lead within the 59th minute on a header by captain Ladislav Krejci after an extended throw-in into the penalty space.
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South Korea equalised within the 67th minute, when Hwang scored after faking a shot with a nifty transfer to clear two Czech gamers. He then made the cross from the correct flank for Oh Hyeon-gyu’s decisive strike within the eightieth minute in a match performed in entrance of a whole lot of empty seats at Guadalajara Stadium.
Led by star ahead Son Heung-min, South Korea managed possession and outshot the Czechs, who had been making their first World Cup look since 2006.
The South Koreans, ranked twenty fifth by FIFA, had a lot of the important scoring possibilities towards the Thirty eighth-ranked Czechs however didn’t capitalise early.
The introduced attendance was 44,985 on the 45,664-capacity Guadalajara Stadium. Sections in the midst of the stands had many unoccupied seats, and different empty seats had been scattered throughout the stadium.
Earlier on Thursday, Mexico ignited their World Cup celebration with a dominant 2-0 victory over nine-man South Africa, as the largest version of the worldwide footballing showpiece kicked off on the iconic Estadio Azteca.
With three factors every, Mexico sit on high of Group A, with South Korea second on purpose distinction. Czechia are third, and South Africa sit on the backside. Within the next round of Group A matches on June 18, Mexico face South Korea in Zapopan, whereas Czechia play South Africa in Atlanta.
The highest two groups from every of the 12 teams, together with the eight finest third-placed groups, proceed to the knockouts, which start with the spherical of 32.
You possibly can comply with the motion on Al Jazeera’s devoted FIFA World Cup 2026 web page, with all the newest information, match build-up and stay textual content commentary, and maintain updated with group standings, real-time match outcomes and schedules.
