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In an entertaining cup to conclude the opening day of the FIFA Men’s World Cup 2026, South Korea emerged late to secure a comeback.
After a frustrating first half in which South Korea dominated without scoring, Czechia opened the scoring with a set-piece goal from captain Ladislav Krejčí. From there, however, it only served as a wake-up call for South Korea, who considerably improved their game and got impressive goals from In-Beom Hwang and Hyun-Gyu Oh.
Here are my conclusions:
1. South Korea’s persistence pays off
The match began with South Korea dominating possession and Czechia sitting patiently focusing on team defense. This was to be expected, as Czechia is a team that has relied on its defense for years.
But South Korea won this game by not getting frustrated, when they easily could have. Despite creating several chances in the final 10 minutes of the first half, South Korea headed to the locker room empty-handed.
Then, in the second half, Czechia completely took the lead against the run of play thanks to their greatest strength with a set-piece goal from Krejčí.
Czech goalscorer and captain Ladislav Krejci applauds his nation’s fans after the match. (Molly Darlington/Getty Images)
At a time when South Korea could have cracked under pressure, panicked or forced chances, the team stuck to its game plan and stayed focused on its attack. Finally, the Taegeuk Warriors were rewarded with a brilliant goal in the 67th minute when Lee Kang-In delivered a brilliant pass that found Hwang, who brought down Czech goalkeeper Matej Kovár after some impressive footwork.
From there, it seemed only a matter of time before South Korea found the winner. In fact, that happened when Hwang moved down the right side and set up substitute Oh to finish from close range.
South Korea head coach Myung-Bo Hong deserves a lot of credit. First, his decisions were correct. Taking off captain and team legend Son Heung-min in the 69th minute is something that could have been viewed controversially if it didn’t work, but Oh came in and found the winning goal.
But more than his tactical decisions, Hong instilled a lot of determination in his team. Comebacks are never easy in a World Cup and require the team to have a strong mentality. That usually comes from the coach.
2. The Czech Republic are a master of set pieces, but more is needed
Heading into this match, Czechia’s game plan was no secret. His greatest strength is his ability to score goals from set pieces. In World Cup qualifying, 11 of his 22 goals came from set pieces. This only continued after head coach Miroslav Koubek, 74, was hired in December. In the playoff round of UEFA qualification in March, Czechia played Ireland and Denmark and drew 2-2 before winning both matches on penalties. All four goals were from set pieces.
Krejčí, a central defender who recently played for Wolverhampton in the Premier League on loan from Girona in Spain, has been especially dominant. He scored in both victories over Ireland and Denmark. Now he can add a World Cup goal to his resume.
In the 78th minute, Czechia almost scored again from a set piece when Tomáš Souček headed in a free kick, but it was disallowed for offside in a very close decision.
To reach the World Cup, Czechia will need a more balanced and varied attack. The team just didn’t create much in open play against Korea.
Despite falling short, Czechia has a realistic path to the round of 16. A win over South Africa could be enough, given that eight of the 12 third-place teams advance, and they also have to catch up with Mexico.
3. Son’s frustrations over Korea
Son Heung-min is the most successful Korean player of all time, with a stellar European career between Hamburg, Bayer Leverkusen and Tottenham, where he spent the majority of his career and eventually rose to team captain. In 2025, he moved to Los Angeles FC of the MLS. His first season in MLS was solid with nine goals in 10 games, but 2026 has been a nightmare with no goals in 13 games.
It was an open question how that crisis would translate to this World Cup. Son was active and involved in dangerous occasions. It looked like a goal was coming for him, and his best chances came late in the first half, including a missed chance from deep in the Czech box. In the second half he continued to threaten and had the best chance of the game in the 56th minute, which forced a stop from close range.
In the end, he was substituted in the 69th minute without contributing to any goals. Now, the pressure will continue to mount on him. South Korea played their best football after Son was substituted, but the team will ultimately need Son to take advantage if they want to win knockout matches. He remains essential for the team to reach its potential.
4. Kang-In Lee and Hwang were the stars of Korea
The two best players on the field in this game were Lee and Hwang from South Korea. Both players combined to tie, but that tells only part of the story of how good both players were.
Lee, a reserve midfielder for recent Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain, was the driving force behind South Korea’s attack throughout the match. Even in the first half, when the game was goalless, usually all the promising attacks came from him. In the second half he raised his game.
Hwang was man of the match, scoring and assisting in a dominant second half. The Feyenoord midfielder, who also played for the Vancouver Whitecaps in 2019-2020, made impressive big plays that broke Czechia out of their well-organized defensive structure and opened up the game.
4 ½. What’s next?
South Korea and Mexico each earned three points in Group A on Thursday, but South Korea currently sits second in the group due to goal difference. They will have the opportunity to overtake El Tri in the standings in their meeting at the Guadalajara Stadium on Thursday.
Czechia is third in Group A with zero points and a goal differential of minus-1. On Thursday they will play last-placed South Africa in their second match of the group stage.
