Japan fans showed mixed reactions to news of Korea's decisive victory. Some acknowledged the performance with surprise, but still criticized the Korean team's tendency to compare itself with Japan.
Japanese outlet Gekisaka reported on the 14th, "Four days after a 0-5 defeat to Brazil, Korea achieved a 2-0 complete victory over Paraguay, which had drawn with Japan."
The South Korea national football team, led by coach Hong Myung-bo, defeated Paraguay 2-0 on Oct. 14 in an A friendly at Seoul World Cup Stadium. It was a match in which they shook off the shock of the heavy loss to Brazil and achieved a perfect rebound in just four days.
On the day, coach Hong Myung-bo changed most of the lineup except for Son Heung-min, Kim Min-jae and Hwang In-beom to test new combinations. Early defensive uncertainty created danger, but in the 15th minute of the first half, Um Ji-seong calmly finished a cross from Lee Myung-jae to open the scoring. It was Um Ji-seong's debut and his first goal in an A match.
South Korea continued to control the flow in the second half. In the 30th minute of the second half, substitute Lee Kang-in beat a defender on the right with a solo move and played a lobbed pass, which Oh Hyun-gyu finished accurately to seal the result. Kim Seung-gyu's consecutive saves and the defenders' concentration preserved the clean-sheet victory.
Meanwhile, in the Japan-Brazil match held just before the Korea-Paraguay game, the Samurai Blue completed a dramatic comeback. Japan conceded consecutive goals to Paulo Henrique and Gabriel Martinelli in the first half, but won 3-2 with second-half goals from Minamino Takumi, Nakamura Keito and Ueda Ayase, recording their first victory against Brazil.
Japanese fans showed complex reactions in the comments on the Gekisaka article. One fan said, "Beating Paraguay, which drew with Japan, is amazing. Honestly, I thought they were just a team with grit, so I was surprised. Still, it seems they have the level to aim for at least the round of 16 in the World Cup."
Some fans expressed a cynical view. One fan criticized, "Korea may have been happy to beat Paraguay, who drew with Japan, but Japan beating the Brazil that you were thrashed by buried it all. In the end, if you don't compare yourselves to Japan, no one would say anything, so when will you escape that childish mindset?"
[OSEN]