ULSAN (Yonhap News) ― Making the FIFA World Cup for the eighth consecutive time is surely a huge accomplishment for South Korea.
The long-time Asian football power, however, backed into the 2014 tournament in Brazil. South Korea lost to Iran 1-0 here on Tuesday, but still maintained a slim edge in the goal difference tiebreaker over Uzbekistan to earn one of four automatic spots for Asia.
South Korea made things more difficult for itself than it should have, and it only highlighted problems that need to be addressed quickly. Otherwise, the country’s stay in Brazil will be very short.
Choi Kang-hee (right) has confirmed his intention to step down from the national team. (Yonhap News)
The latter part of the fourth Asian qualification round was, in particular, a struggle for South Korea.
Paired with Iran, Uzbekistan, Qatar and Lebanon in Group A, South Korea was early on seen as a favorite to rank among the top two in the group and easily earn an automatic spot in the 2014 tournament.
And yet for the first time in 20 years for South Korea, a World Cup berth came down to the last qualifying match.
The last four matches for South Korea had one common, disconcerting trend: the team’s inability to score.
Under head coach Choi Kang-hee, who replaced Cho Kwang-rae near the end of the third qualification round in December 2011, South Korea underwent a substantial shift in offensive schemes.
Cho followed “tiki-taka” football perfected by Spain and FC Barcelona, many of whose stars are on the Spanish national team.
Spain is the reigning World Cup and European champion, while Barcelona has also enjoyed domestic and continental success of late.
Both have been relying on short, quick passes through tight space and players’ movement without the ball to generate scoring chances. Such a style of play has also allowed both teams to maintain superiority in ball possession, and they’ve also been blessed with skilled players who could hold on to the ball for extended stretches.
While Cho never had the same luxury of talent, his preaching of that European style created more diversity on offense. If anything, South Korean games had some entertainment value.
With Choi at the helm, however, the team’s offensive flair virtually disappeared. Choi has mostly stuck with the same, predictable strategy: Sending his fullbacks down either wing, having them cross for tall forwards, often the 196-centimeter-tall Kim Shin-wook, and hoping the ball would somehow find a South Korean player in the box.
Long passes by South Korean fullbacks and midfielders have been the equivalent of desperate Hail Mary passes thrown by NFL quarterbacks ― they launch one up in the air and hope for the best.
