There is a plan to break the ‘dense defense!'
Coach Hong Myung-bo's plan has once again come to naught.
The national soccer team led by coach Hong Myung-bo (56) drew 1-1 against Jordan in the '2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup Asia Region Round 3 Group B Match 8' held at Suwon World Cup Stadium on the 25th at 8 p.m.
After drawing both home games, first-place Korea (4 wins, 4 draws, 16 points) is being pursued by second-place Jordan (3 wins, 4 draws, 1 loss, 13 points) with a 3-point gap. Korea’s early confirmation of qualification for the World Cup is now in vain.
Korea has recently drawn three consecutive matches against Middle Eastern teams: Palestine (1-1), Oman (1-1), and Jordan (1-1). In particular, they drew both home games after scoring the first goal but failing to maintain the lead. Repeating the same mistakes is a significant problem.
Few teams bow down in Asia. Korea attacks unilaterally, while the opponent drops back. The opponent comes out with a dense defense. However, frustratingly, Coach Hong Myung-bo has not provided a solution in the same situation.
In the game against Jordan, Lee Jae-sung scored the first goal just 5 minutes into the first half, making the game easy for Korea. It was a situation where the opponent had no choice but to rise. Nevertheless, due to Park Yong-woo's mistake, they allowed one counterattack and ultimately conceded the equalizer.
Desperate, Coach Hong Myung-bo replaced wings Hwang Hee-chan and Lee Dong-gyeong with Yang Hyun-jun and Yang Min-hyeok in the second half. However, there was no significant tactical change. Hwang Hee-chan actively participated in the attack during the first half as well. With Lee Kang-in absent, there was no player to break through the midfield with a key pass.
Eventually, the expected situation repeated again. Korea failed to capitalize on the advantageous situation of two home games and drew for three consecutive matches. Not winning after scoring first at home places significant responsibility on the coach.
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