Preview

This is a massive game for both teams, with South Korea looking to cement their place in next year’s World Cup, while the fancied Saudi Arabians need a win to keep their World Cup dreams alive. They’ve won the two last editions of the Asian Cup, in 1984 and 1988, and they have a team which is easily regarded as the country’s best ever. However, with only two points from their first three outings, now is the time to show to the world just how good the 1989 edition of the Saudi national team is. For South Korea, Italia ’90 would mean a second successive World Cup participation. This is how the table reads prior to kick-off: 

Pos	Team	Pl	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pts
1	South Korea	3	2	1	0	2	0	5
2	United Arab Emirates	4	1	3	0	3	2	5
3	China	4	2	0	2	4	4	4
4	North Korea	4	1	1	2	2	2	3
5	Qatar	4	0	3	1	2	4	3
6	Saudi Arabia	3	0	2	1	2	3	2

That 1988 triumph had come in Qatar and against today’s opponents in the final, although it had been a close affair, no goals, and an eventual triumph in the resulting penalty shoot-out. So far, this World Cup qualification final round had been a mightily disappointing affair for Carlos Alberto Parreira and his side, and they knew that nothing but two points mattered today if they were to live up to their pre-qualifying favourites tag. They would need to make do without arguably their biggest star in striker Majed Abdullah Al-Mohammed, who got himself sent-off in their goalless draw with United Arab Emirates last time out. “The Pelé of the desert” had for years been one of the Arab world’s most respected footballers. 

Saudi Arabia had been the better side during their 0-0 against United Arab Emirates, but in a game played out in difficult conditions, they had lacked penetration, despite looking promising at times. Omar Bakhashwein had come into the team for that game, and he kept his place in the starting eleven on this occasion. With Al-Mohammed suspended, Sadoun Al-Suraiti, who had been introduced in midfield at half time last time out, was back in the starting select. He had started in both the 2-1 loss against China and in the 1-1 draw with Qatar, and indeed scored their early goal against the latter. Would they continue in 4-3-3 without Al-Mohammed and against what was surely considered the strongest opponents in this final round? 

It is definitely worth noticing how Parreira has opted for no less than three 19 year olds for these games. Full-back Al-Dosari, centre-back Madani and midfielder Al-Suraiti are all starters on this occasion.

After two straight wins, the South Koreans were looking on course for a second successive World Cup participation. They had played nine qualifiers to date, and had yet to concede. This was surely seen as a crunch game, with Saudi Arabia having come into the qualification carrying something of a favourites tag. Not that manager Lee Hoe-taik would’ve been duly worried, as he knew the capacity his team possessed. The pair of wins leading up to this fixture had come against East Asian rivals, both had been 1-0 victories, 

For this game, Hoe-taik had left out, for whatever reason, enterprising midfielder Kim Sang-ho. The 25 year old had been substituted in both of their previous matches, and into the team had come Lee Young-jin in his place. We also notice how Hwang Bo-kwan had returned to the starting eleven after he’d been replaced by Choi Sang-kook for the game against China. We’d seen South Korea in a very attack-minded 4-3-3 formation in their previous round of games, but against lowly opposition such tactics could have been expected. Were they more pragmatic on this occasion, with Saudi Arabia expected to prove a formidable opponent? 

47 year old Argentinian referee Carlos Espósito had been placed in charge of this fixture, his second of the AFC final stage series, after he’d been the man in the middle for the opening day clash between China and Saudi Arabia. Previously in the World Cup qualification, he’d also run the rule over the CONMEBOL tie between Peru and Uruguay in Lima. At the 1986 World Cup, he’d refereed both Belgium v Mexico in the group stage and France v Italy in the round of 16. Espósito had a long list of appointments behind him at club level, and was about as experienced as referees came. 

Saudi Arabia (4-3-3)

Player	Notes	Age	Club
1 Abdullah Jamal Al-Deahyea		28
2 Abdullah Saleh Al-Dosari		19
4 Ahmed Jamil Madani		19
5 Saleh Mohammed Al-Nuaimah (c)		29
6 Saleh Al-Saleh		23
10 Fahad Al-Musaibeah	sub 67′	28
11 Mohaisen Mubarak Al-Jam’an Al-Dosari		23
13 Mohamed Abd Al-Jawad		26
15 Yousuf Al-Thunayan		25
18 Sadoun Al-Suraiti	sub 71′	19
20 Omar Bakhashwain		27

Substitutes
22 Khaled Al-Sabiyani		26
7 Youssef Al-Dosari	on 71′	21
14 Khalid Massad Al-Muwalid	on 67′	18

Manager: Carlos Alberto Parreira

South Korea (4-4-2)

Player	Notes	Age	Club
21 Kim Poong-joo	79′	25
2 Park Kyung-hoon		28
3 Choi Kang-hee		30
4 Lee Young-jin		25
5 Chung Yong-hwan (c)		29
9 Hwang Bo-kwan		24
14 Choi Soon-ho	sub 75′	27
15 Yoon Deok-yeo	sub 62′	28
16 Kim Joo-sung		23
17 Gu Sang-bum		25
18 Hwang Sun-hong		21

Substitutes
7 Baek Jong-chul	on 75′, 90′	28
13 Chung Jong-soo	on 62′	28

Manager: Lee Hoe-taik

Tactical line-ups

Match report

First half: 

This is the 12th match of the series, all of which have been played in the national stadium in Singapore across a two weeks span. Naturally, the pitch is beginning to take its toll, especially as several matches have had downpour. 

South Korea, who had been fortunate in regulation time to avoid a goal against in the Asian Cup final ten months earlier, although they would ultimately go on and lose the decisive penalty shoot-out, needed to erase whatever feelings from that day which still lingered in order to cement their place at Italia ’90. They kicked off through forwards Hwang Sun-hong and Choi Soon-ho. 

The Saudis start the game on the front foot, and set an early tone through left-sided attacker Mohaisen Al-Jam’an Al-Dosari’s raid and shot just wide of the target 20 seconds in. He’d taken advantage of some early indecision in the South Korean team, which had been stand-offish, personified through midfielder Lee Young-jin, and allowed Al-Jam’an Al-Dosari a run through the left hand channel. 

The early warning shot for the Korean team, which had yet to concede a single goal throughout their qualification campaign, didn’t seem to spur them into action, as they sat back and allowed Saudi Arabia to maintain the initiative. The latter were quite aggressive in their approach, and wouldn’t allow South Korea to build cautiously, pressing them inside their own half. Stand-in striker was 19 year old Sadoun Al-Suraiti, who must have felt a great level of pressure to replace the team’s major star in Majed Al-Mohammed, but he made sure right from the start to be an instrumental figure in their press play by giving chase when either centre-back or defensive midfielder Yoon Deok-yeo was in possession. 

Saudi Arabia have a desire to come forward towards the left hand side of the pitch, and eight minutes in the first shot on target is recorded by left-back Mohamed Abd Al-Jawad, who picked up a stray pass from central defender Park Kyung-hoon halfway inside his own half before he realized there was room ahead of him to exploit. He carried the ball to within 26-27 yards before unleashing a left-footer which ultimately was an easy task for Kim Poong-joo to deal comfortably with. Again, the South Koreans had just stood off their opponent, like players were expecting the next man to deal with him. 

The South Korean team is able to relieve themselves of the early pressure when that initial intensity with which the Saudi team had begun started to wear off. This allows them to do precisely how they wish, namely to mount from the back through their pair of central defenders, who by the quarter of an hour mark is allowed to reach the halfway line before any press is met. They even arrive at their first shot on target when the mercurial Kim Joo-sung is allowed to pick up a header down from striker Choi Soon-ho and play in holding midfielder Deok-yeo, who had made a stealthy run from the deep to arrive within 20 yards of goal before unleashing just as central defender Ahmed Madani was about to get his tackle in. Goalkeeper Abdullah Al-Deahyea didn’t have too much trouble in collecting the effort. 

Having settled on the tricky surface, South Korea begin to show their ability in stringing moves together. They have a number of technically gifted players within their ranks, and we see how Joo-sung is beginning to stamp his authority on the proceedings. Positioned originally in the wide left area, he clearly has freedom to roam, and he is someone who constantly wants to be on the ball, being allowed to do so by his team mates, who will often search him out. Joo-sung, with his trademark mullet, is good at making himself available. He orchestrates much of what South Korea do when going forward, although yet they’ve not duly worried the opponents’ defensive ranks that earlier shot by Deok-yeo apart.

We had seen South Korea in a free-flowing 4-3-3 formation in the initial group stage against vastly inferior opposition. On this occasion manager Lee Hoe-taik has set them up in a more controlled 4-4-2, where their midfield has assumed a diamond-like shape. They have said Deok-yeo sitting at the base, working right in front of his pair of central defenders, allowing his central compatriot Lee Young-jin plenty of attacking scope. Towards the right of the midfield quartet is Hwang Bo-kwan, who does plenty of running, but who has so far not really come into the game much. 

While the tall Kim Poong-joo has been trusted with the goalkeeper’s position for the entirety of this final group stage of the AFC section of the World Cup qualification, the 25 year old had also been fortunate enough to have a settled back four immediately in front of him. It has been highlighted how the South Koreans have yet to concede a single goal since the start of their qualification campaign, so they are defensively very sound. At full-backs are the experienced Choi Kang-hee, 30 years of age, to the right, while the more attacking and direct Gu Sang-bum works the left flank from his full-back position. The latter has plenty of energy, and certainly isn’t shy in crossing the halfway line as they play their way out from the back. 

Their midfield four has already been mentioned, while up top they have a tandem consisting of the imposing 27 year old that is Choi Soon-ho and the more flexible Hwang Sun-hong, their 21 year old leading goalscorer with six goals to his name in the World Cup qualification. South Korea also have in their locker a direct approach, and when they opt to hit it long from the halfway line, Soon-ho is typically their target. He has good aerial reach, and is a big handful for the Saudi defence. In these opening 22-23 minutes, Sun-hong hasn’t made much of an impression, but he’s previously shown what a lethal finisher he can be. Even if he is lurking towards the left hand channel, the opponents ought to pay constant attention to him. 

We had seen Saudi Arabia in a 4-3-3 against United Arab Emirates, and this is Carlos Alberto Parreira’s prefered formation once again, with just that single, forced change from that game due to Majed Al-Mohammed’s suspension following his red card. Despite keeping a clean sheet in their last match, Khaled Al-Sabiyani has had to surrender the goalkeeper’s jersey to their number one choice Abdullah Al-Deahyea, who had missed out on that scoreless draw with UAE for whatever reason. 

As the big leader at the back, Saudi Arabia have captain Saleh Mohammed Al-Nuaimah, their 29 year old defensive star, who had been a major feature at both of their Asian Cup wins. He’s someone who is calm, composed and oozes authority, while he’s got a highly promising 19 year old in the shape of Ahmed Jamil Madani to his left to keep tabs on. For somone so young to appear so collected on such a big occasion, the left-sided of the two centre-backs can take pride in how he conducts himself. He surely benefits from working alongside Al-Nuaimah. Perhaps are they lacking somewhat in aerial mettle, as Soon-ho is a difficult proposition to deal with. Madani, though, has already shown that he’s capable of moving forward with the ball along the deck. 

On the topic of teenagers, Saudi Arabia have one also at right-back, with Abdullah Al-Dosari performing capably, especially as he’s up against one of the opponents’ leading stars in Joo-sung. The other 19 year old in their back line leaves a steady impression as he focuses to not concede ground behind him for the South Korean wizzard to take advantage of. To the left, Mohamed Abd Al-Jawad has already introduced himself as someone with vision and idealism to venture forward and be a nuisance, while the 26 year old has yet to be tested defensively, with South Korea rarely threatening along their right hand side so far. 

Keeping them tick in midfield is the deep-lying Saleh Al-Saleh, who had also done well during that 0-0 draw with United Arab Emirates last time out. He’s reasonably good in his defensive play, maintains his position well, and has proved that he’s combative enough to win a challenge when directly threatened through the centre of the pitch. He’s got the crafty Fahad Al-Musaibeah to his advanced left, and yet we’ve not seen him much in terms of possession. As we’ll remember, he’d been exposed to some fierce tackling from the opposition in their previous match. To complete their midfield three we see Omar Bakhashwein, who had started wide to the right in attack, but had shifted back into midfield during the game against the Emirates. He’s also not done a whole lot of visible work hitherto. 

In the absence of ‘Pelé of the desert’, Yousuf Al-Thunayan, who is their right-sided forward right from the offset on this occasion (he’d started in midfield four days earlier), is their more prominent player. He might look a tad lazy, but that impression is deceptive, as he’s so assured once he gains possession, making use of a low centre of gravity and posing a big threat to South Korea’s left-back Sang-bum. The Saudis often wish to play him in, but then again they have an even more direct threat along their left hand side, where the previously mentioned Mohaisen Al-Jam’an Al-Dosari really is a handful. He might not possess Al-Thunayan’s elegance and trickery, but his physique allows him to create havoc with his forward runs. In the centre is the third 19 year old in their starting select, as we see Sadoun Al-Suraiti, the player who had applied plenty of press play early on. So far, though, it has been a comfortable ride for the two South Korean central defenders to handle the Saudi centre-forward. 

The passages of play just beyond the halfway stage of the first half do not impress anyone in attendance. The pitch must surely take some blame for this, although it must be said that neither side appears to be on top of their game. Intensity levels aren’t particularly high, and there are few situations in and around the respective penalty areas. We see a fairly low pace, and there are passes going astray and into touch. While South Korea had had moments earlier, the goals and points chasing Saudis are again on top, albeit that doesn’t really say a whole lot. At the heart of the South Korean defence, captain Yong-hwan is one of the more impressive players on the pitch, as he gets his head on crosses and make blocks when Saudi Arabia threaten. Goalless on the half hour mirrors what happens on the pitch well. 

Saudi Arabia continue to look the better team the longer the half progresses. They maintain possession, they keep the opposition pinned back inside their own half, yet they are unable to create necessary openings for their more advanced players to arrive in good positions near the South Korean goal. The latter defend well; they are soundly organized. The central defensive block, where captain Yong-hwan continues to lead his team mates in exemplary fashion, particularly stands out, with Kyung-hoon a very capable second in command. There really isn’t a whole lot happening through Saudi striker Al-Suraiti, and one can’t help but thinking whether Majed Al-Mohammed could’ve made a difference if he’d been available. 

On the rare occasions that South Korea venture forward, they look incoherent. Runs off the ball rarely coincide with forward passes, and so they run out of touch before they can apply any sort of pressure against the Saudi defence. It is hardly a surprise that Saudi Arabia are the more motivated of the two, as it will be a major disappointment for them not to at least keep their hopes of qualifying alive until the final round of matches. 

With half time looming, South Korea central defender Kyung-hoon decides to move forward with the ball at his feet. Arriving some 35 yards from the Saudi goal, he is taken out by Al-Saleh, and a free-kick is awarded by the Argentinian referee, who is maintaining discipline well, although both teams are well within the boundaries of good sportsmanship. From the resulting free-kick, Soon-ho pushes the ball a couple of yards to his left for Bo-kwan to strike at goal, and while the wide midfielder hits it well, it is still a surprise to see it end up in the back of the net. Al-Deahyea ought to have saved it, and it can be seen in the replay from behind Poong-joo’s goal how the ball seems to evade the goalkeeper’s grasp. It could well go down as a goalkeeper’s error, although the jubilant South Koreans won’t mind. They celebrate the strike in fashion, and know that a win will qualify them for Italia ’90. 

Unsurprisingly, the Saudi team seems stunned by the South Korean goal. They had looked in the ascendancy for a prolongued spell before the strike, and appeared to not quite having understood what had hit them. The East Asians controlled possession for the remaining few minutes until half time, but for a ball which was lifted high into the South Korean penalty area, only for Poong-joo to punch it clear above Al-Suraiti’s head. Señor Espósito calls an end to the opening period some 40 seconds into time added on. 

In a not too exciting first 45 minutes of play, South Korea enter the dressing rooms with the knowledge that should they maintain their defensive record intact through to full time, they will be going to next year’s World Cup. 

Half time score: Saudi Arabia 0, South Korea 1. 

Second half: 

The footage from the final 45 minutes dives straight into the action, and we see a massive opportunity for an equalizer which comes about from full-back Al-Jawad’s cross from the left towards the back stick, where dangerman Al-Thunayan takes the ball down on his chest behind Sang-bum, before he contrives to poke it wide of the left hand post in an attempt to lift the ball over Poong-joo. A tad more composure, and he could have brought the leveller, and in the process have scored the first goal against South Korea in their World Cup qualifying campaign. It should give Saudi Arabia some courage and belief that they can get something from the game. 

We should hasten to add that there have been no changes during the interval for either side; they both continue as they had left off.

The first few minutes of the second half are eventful, with plenty happening in both directions. Al-Thunayan was on song, and wasn’t detered by his early miss, as he sought to take on Sang-bum in the South Korean left-back position. The latter struggled to keep up with him, and on a quick transition, something which Saudi Arabia were rather decent at, with this particular move having involved Al-Suraiti and Bakhashwain, the latter treading Al-Thunayan through, only for him to be unceremoniously tackled to the ground by his adversary inside the area. To his credit, the Saudi right-sided forward didn’t complain about it, even if he might have had a point. The tackle was slightly over the top, and Sang-bum must have considered himself a tad fortunate not to have conceded a penalty. 

On 51 minutes, South Korea come close to adding to their tally when Bo-kwan, who is involved to a greater extent in these early second half stages, makes it to the byline after making it past Al-Jawad and Madani, with his cut-back flicked over from six yards by Sun-hong. It wasn’t like him to miss such a big goalscoring opportunity, but it must be added that Saudi right-back Al-Dosary challenged him well and put him off just as he was about to side-foot home. A minute or so earlier, both team’s deep-lying midfielders had been receiving treatment following an altercation, with Deok-yeo and Al-Saleh both busy, combative players. 

There are a number of fine players in this Saudi team, and they appreciate these opportunities to break forward with pace. While Al-Thunayan is thrifty, Al-Jam’an Al-Dosary to the left is far more direct in his approach, using his strength and pace to drive past his opponent, which is South Korean right-back Kang-hee. On 55 minutes, the Saudi left-sided forward had drawn a save from Poong-joo on his near post, and before the hour, he was again causing worry in the opponents’ rear guard with his being direct. He was eventually stopped by a Kyung-hoon tackle as he’d just made it inside the area, but there were once again no big shouts for a penalty. 

Possibly due to that earlier knock, South Korea holding midfielder Deok-yeo is substituted on 62 minutes, and he’s replaced by 28 year old Chung Jong-soo. This proves to be a straight swap.

The game continues to be a seeworthy affair, and Saudi Arabia have far from given up, even if coming back from a goal down against an opponent which has yet to concede a goal in the entire World Cup qualification is a big ask. They pose questions to the South Korean defence, and while Al-Thunayan had been their main source of inspiration in the initial stages after the half-time interval, it is certainly Mohaisen Al-Jam’an Al-Dosary who is the more eye-catching among their front three as the half evolves. Another fine player, someone of great promise, is 19 year old central defender Ahmed Madani, who certainly ranks in the ‘ball-playing’ category. He’s composed for such a young age, and can be seen moving forward as Saudi Arabia keep chasing an equalizer. With the half approaching its midway stage, he plays a one-two with Al-Musaibeah (who on this occasion has been giving a very underwhelming performance), before making it as far as to the byline, from where he delivers a cross towards an unmarked Al-Jam’an Al-Dosary, who heads over from ten yards out. 

As for the South Korean team, they have long since realized that they’re up against a tough opponent, and so they try to maintain their defensive composure, whilst they remain balanced when there is an opportunity to move forward at pace. They do so with few players, and instrumental in their breaks forward are both wide midfielders, Bo-kwan and Joo-sung respectively. Target-man Soon-ho has been rather marginalized since the start of the half, with Sun-hong easily the more inspired and involved of their pair of strikers. In addition to that near miss, he’d also had an attempt over from outside the area following a Joo-sung pass back. Someone who’s not been asserting himself a great deal is Young-jin in that central midfield role. It’s been a relatively tame performance from him. 

It feels quite logical when Parreira opts to take off two of his less influental players in the forward direction as the second half marches on, with substitutions being made on 67 and 71 minutes respectively. First off is Al-Musaibeah, who is replaced by Khalid Al-Muwalid in that inside left midfield position, where the Saudi #10 had never really been able to stamp any authority on the game. The substitute is 18 years old, so for a few minutes, the Saudis have no less than four teenagers on the pitch. That is until striker Al-Suraiti is eventually hauled off to be replaced by 21 year old Youssef Al-Dosari. There are some shortcomings in Al-Suraiti’s game as a striker, and it was time for the substitute to have a go. 

South Korea are just around a quarter of an hour away from securing that World Cup spot when manager Hoe-taik makes his second and final substitution of the afternoon, taking off Soon-ho, who had sported a bandage around his right thigh since the start, replacing him with 28 year Baek Jong-chul. All four substitutions being made in this game see the players who are brought on directly replace those who had left the pitch. The starting striker had had a less influental second half, and in bringing another type of forward on in his place could possibly cause Saudi Arabia a different kind of threat should the South Koreans decide to go on the break in earnest search for a second goal. 

With the clock ticking away in favour of the South Koreans, there is a growing feeling that Saudi Arabia do not have that necessary goal instinct in them to come back from this. They are no longer capable of maintaining a high tempo in their approach, as players are visibly tiring. There had been no moments of inspiration from Al-Thunayan in a long while, and even Al-Jam’an Al-Dosary has had little impact in the last ten minutes, rounding the 80 minute mark. A poor header well wide from substitute Youssef Al-Dosari had been their solitary goal attempt since Al-Jam’an Al-Dosari’s earlier header. For the steady South Korean rear guard, where captain Yong-hwan had led by example, it was by now becoming a very manageable task to keep the opposition at bay. And in their second substitute Jong-chul they had someone who was able to ask questions of the Saudi defence through clever movement and keeping on to the ball with a low centre of gravity. 

In a desperate attempt to get back on level terms, Saudi Arabia go distinctly direct towards the end of the game, pouring balls into the South Korean penalty area. It must be said that goalkeeper Poong-joo asserts himself well when faced by this challenge, and much thanks to his size he is able to either punch or hold every time. The custodian is also awarded a yellow card for time wasting. He saw a 25 yard free-kick from Al-Nuaimah well over, and subsequently beat away for a corner an Al-Thunayan effort as the forward drove into the box. It was a steady display by the 25 year old between the sticks. 

A minute from time, South Korea are predatory when given the opportunity, as Al-Nuaimah slips when attempting to clear a Joo-sung cross, and Sun-hong picks up the pieces and finishes with ease through the legs of Al-Deahyea before Madani can get his tackle in. 2-0! It is a scoreline which doesn’t fully reflect how the game’s been, but they’d done the job in both boxes, something which now has them qualified for Italia ’90. Naturally, they are overjoyed when celebrating the 21 year old striker’s seventh goal of the qualification campaign, something which sees him as the AFC confederation’s top goalscorer. 

When referee Espósito calls an end to the proceedings around a minute into time added on, there is obviously scenes of elation from the South Koreans. They have qualified for a second successive World Cup, and the players complete a lap of honour carrying a big South Korean flag between them. Let’s just add that Jong-chul was given an injury time booking for giving Madani a kick on his ankle, even if that didn’t matter to the jubilant Korean team. Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, are out, even if they gave it what they had. They just proved too indecisive in front of goal, and must have rued the absence of striker Al-Mohammed. There are reports of a yellow card for possibly their best player on the day, Al-Saleh, but we’ve no visual confirmation, so it is likely this happened around the 70 minute mark, when there is a three-four minute long period which the transmission had skipped. 

Final score: Saudi Arabia 0, South Korea 2.