2002 World Cup South Korea
South Korea’s Dutch coach Guus Hiddink Semi Finals: South Korea 0- 1 Germany South Korea’s remarkable World Cup came to an end against Germany in the semi-final. Despite a hard-working and disciplined performance, to be enough for Germany to overcome the Taeguk Warriors. Unlike Korea’s two previous games against Italy and Spain, the semi-final was not marred by any incident. Third Place Play off: South Korea 2- 3 Turkey Turkey, another surprise package in this eventful World Cup had reached the semi-finals without even featuring for 48 years in a World Cup. Turkey’s ace striker Hakan Sukur scored the fastest-ever goal in 72-year World Cup history – only 11 seconds into action – lifting his side to 1-0 lead. South Korea’s midfielder Lee Eul-Yong leveled the score by sending home a brilliant curling free-kick in the 9th minute.
The stadiums of the 2002 FIFA World Cup: Yokohama Intl Stadium, Seoul Stadium, Daegu Stadium, Saitama Stadium, Nagai Stadium and all other WC stadiums.
But only after four minutes, Ilhan Mansiz got a timely pass from Sukur and fired a close-range shot home, giving Turkey a 2-1 lead. The third Turkish goal was a brilliant link up play between Hakan Sukur and Illan Masiz with the latter firing his shot past the Korean ‘keeper.
The second half saw the Koreans launching waves of attacks and threatening the Turkish goal. However, a fairytale comeback was thwarted by the ever impressive ‘keeper Rustu Recber.
Throughout the World Cup, South Korea put in some inspirational performances. They ensured that they were well disciplined, battled for the ball and played as a unit. Their superior fitness levels ensured they edged the matches against fatigued Italian and Spanish teams. They also scored late goals displaying a never say die attitude and a fantastic togetherness as a team. It is therefore a great shame, that such well spirited performances were overshadowed by poor refereeing decisions and allegations of alleged match fixing by officials.
The fact that they reached the semifinals without ever winning a game in the previous editions spoke volumes of their performances. They were the first nation outside Europe and South America to reach the semi-finals since the United States in 1930, ensuring that Asia was put firmly on the global football map.
2002 World Cup Scandal
The success of the World Cup also ensured that European doors opened up for the talented Korean players. Park Ji Sung, one of their greatest superstars, ended up being signed by Manchester United, a tribute to the feats of the 2002 world cup.
2002 World Cup South Korea Team
2002 Fifa South Korea Scandal
Ahn Jung-Hwan, another prolific player during the tournament, ended up playing in Germany. The success of the World Cup has inspired a generation of stars who are doing well both at the club and country level. South Korea is now a team which features in the knock out stages of the World cup finals. If anything, the success of 2002 has ensured that South Korea cannot be taken lightly anymore.