(World Cup) Emerging forward chasing S. Korean scoring record in must-win match
By Yoo Jee-ho
DOHA, Dec. 1 (Yonhap) — He has only played two FIFA World Cup matches but forward Cho Gue-sung has already written a piece of South Korean football history, with a chance to set even more records.
By netting two goals against Ghana on Monday in a Group H match, Cho became the first South Korean to score multiple times in a World Cup match. With one more goal against Portugal on Friday at Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, west of Doha, Cho will set a record for most goals by a South Korean player at a single World Cup tournament.
And three goals will also tie Cho with retired stars Park Ji-sung and Ahn Jung-hwan, and current national team captain Son Heung-min for first place among South Korean World Cup goal scorers.
It’s a remarkable turn of events for the 24-year-old Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors forward, who began his club career in the second division in South Korea.
Cho came off the bench to sub for Hwang Ui-jo in South Korea’s first match against Uruguay last Thursday and head coach Paulo Bento gave Cho his first World Cup start four days later. Hwang had been the go-to striker for Bento for most of the coach’s four-year tenure with the Taegeuk Warriors, but Cho, coming off his first career K League 1 scoring title, has usurped the 30-year-old veteran.
Cho is bigger and stronger than Hwang and is better able to fight off defenders to position himself in the box or beat them to the ball. For both of his goals against Ghana, Cho bulldozed his way toward the goalmouth to meet crosses with his head.
South Korea will now need the same type of magic from Cho and the rest of the attacking corps against Portugal.
In order to reach the round of 16, South Korea must first defeat Portugal. And then, if Uruguay beat Ghana on Friday, South Korea and Uruguay will end up in a tiebreak situation, with the goal difference being the first category. If Uruguay and Ghana play to a draw, then it will be South Korea and Ghana needing a tiebreaker to determine who will move on to the next phase. Portugal are already through, thanks to two consecutive wins to start their competition.
Portugal coach Fernando Santos hinted Thursday that he may use a different starting lineup from the ones used in Portugal’s first two matches, noting that his players are fatigued and at a risk for injuries. Cristiano Ronaldo, the Portuguese captain and an all-time great, is a “50-50” shot to play, Santos said.
Even if Portugal rest some of their regulars, South Korea will still face a tough challenge. Their best defender, center back Kim Min-jae, is banged up after sustaining a right calf injury against Uruguay. After playing through pains against Ghana, Kim has been limited in training sessions.
Captain Son Heung-min has played valiantly wearing a protective mask, but he has clearly not been the same offensive wizard that he typically is.
This is where Cho, as unlikely a star as South Korea have seen in recent World Cups, must step in. A record-setting performance by Cho may well lift South Korea to the knockouts.
