South Africa have reached the World Cup knockout rounds for the first time in their history by finishing second in Group A with a 1-0 victory over South Korea.<\/p>\n
Thapelo Maseko netted a deserved winner in the 63rd minute to set up a round-of-32 tie with Canada on Sunday as their remarkable revival continued under manager Hugo Broos following their humbling nine-man defeat to Mexico in the opening game.<\/p>\n
Heung-Min Son’s difficult tournament continued as he was benched for the first time in 13 World Cup games by South Korea boss Myung-Bo Hong, whose side failed to build on their victory over the Czech Republic and now face a nerve-wracking wait to see if they qualify as one of the best third-placed teams.<\/p>\n
South Korea were unable to make their 68 per cent possession count in Guadalupe, lacking a cutting edge as South Africa had more shots and recorded a higher xG on their way to earning a famous victory.<\/p>\n
The key moments from Guadalupe…<\/a><\/p>\n 2: OFF THE LINE! Min-Jae Kim attacks a corner at the near post and sends a powerful header that hits South Africa defender Aubrey Modiba on the line.<\/p>\n 8: JUST WIDE! Kang-In Lee fires a shot from inside that area that whistles past South Africa’s right post.<\/p>\n 30: DOUBLE SAVE! Seung-Gyu Kim parries Mbatha’s powerful effort and Makgopa puts the follow-up straight into the goalkeeper’s hands.<\/p>\n 46: TRIPLE CHANGE! Heung-Min Son comes on at half-time as part of three subs as South Korea move to a back four.<\/p>\n 63: GOAL! Thapelo Maseko finishes superbly from inside the area to move South Africa up to second in Group A.<\/p>\n Son struggling to shine<\/p>\n Sky Sports’ David Richardson:<\/p>\n Heung-Min Son’s World Cup has yet to ignite.<\/p>\n South Korea’s talisman, 33, has endured a difficult start to what is likely to be his fourth and final tournament, yet to have his moment like many of the game’s big stars.<\/p>\n Son was replaced in the 69th minute of their opening match by Hyeon-Gyu, who netted the winner, and then lasted only 57 minutes in their defeat to Mexico.<\/p>\n He had the fewest touches of South Korea’s starters in both of those games and manager Myung-Bo Hong made the bold, yet increasingly understandable, decision to bench him against South Africa, ending a run of 12 consecutive World Cup starts.<\/p>\n Introduced at half-time, Son was more involved, registering 29 touches, but only one came inside the penalty area. Once capable of terrifying defenders with his explosive pace from the wing, the 33-year-old has found his influence diminished by age and has often been suffocated when deployed through the middle.<\/p>\n Without a World Cup goal since 2018, Son will hope there is still one defining moment left in him should South Korea reach the knockout stages.<\/p>\n What the result means… <\/p>\n Rate the players! <\/p>\n Monterosa<\/p>\n This content is provided by Monterosa, which may be using cookies and other technologies. Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to Monterosa cookies. Enable Cookies<\/a>
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