Overview
Second place in Group A and a ticket to the 1/16 round of the 2026 World Cup will be the goal that both South Africa and South Korea aim for when the two teams face each other at Estadio Monterrey stadium in the last match of the group stage.
South Korea is holding a great advantage in the race to win a ticket to the next round. Although no longer having a chance to compete for the top spot in the group due to losing to Mexico in head-to-head record, coach Hong Myung-bo's team is still rated by Opta supercomputer as having a 80% chance of finishing in second place.
The second-placed team in Group A will face the second-placed representative of Group B, where Canada, Switzerland, Bosnia & Herzegovina and Qatar are present.
Just needing to get one point against South Africa, South Korea is almost certain to win a ticket to the next round, regardless of the result of the match between the Czech Republic and Mexico. Conversely, a defeat and victory of the Czech Republic will make the Asian representative stop right from the group stage.
Meanwhile, South Africa still has a chance to create a surprise. After losing to Mexico in the opening match, the African representative continued to be led by the Czech Republic in the first half of the second match and seemed to have run out of hope.
However, the bright performance after the break helped them regain a valuable point. According to the assessment of Opta supercomputer, South Africa still has 19.7% chance of winning a ticket to the knockout round.
The biggest strength of this team lies in ball control ability. In the draw against the Czech Republic, South Africa made up to 508 passes - their highest number in a World Cup match. The ball control rate of 61.7% is also South Africa's second highest level in this arena, only behind the match against Denmark in 1998.
The midfield continued to be South Africa's highlight with Teboho Mokoena. This midfielder created five chances and had 120 touches against the Czech Republic, becoming the first African player in World Cup history to achieve both milestones in the same match.
However, the defense is still a big concern. South Africa has only kept a clean sheet in one of the 11 World Cup matches they have participated in and there has been no match without conceding a goal in the last six appearances.
This is an opportunity for Korean attacking stars to shine, especially Son Heung-min. If he takes the field, Son Heung-min will have his 13th match at the World Cup, only behind two legends of Korean football, Hong Myung-bo (16 matches) and Park Ji-sung (14 matches).
Besides Son, Lee Kang-in is also showing impressive form. The Paris Saint-Germain midfielder is the player who created the most chances and had the most successful dribbles in the victory over the Czech Republic, before continuing to maintain his outstanding performance in the match against Mexico.
Head-to-head record
This will be the first time South Africa and South Korea have faced each other in the history of World Cups.
South Korea did not have an impressive record when facing African representatives at the biggest football festival on the planet. The kimchi team only won one of 4 matches against opponents from the black continent, which was a 2-1 victory over Togo at the 2006 World Cup.
Score prediction: South Africa 0-1 South Korea
The match between South Africa and South Korea takes place at 8:00 am on June 25 (Vietnam time).
