Commentator says South Korea will advance to knockout stage

Oh Hyeon-gyu celebrates with Son Heung-min after South Korea's 2-1 comeback victory over the Czech Republic in Group A of the 2026 World Cup at Guadalajara Stadium in Zapopan, Mexico, on Thursday. [Yonhap]
Oh Hyeon-gyu celebrates with Son Heung-min after South Korea's 2-1 comeback victory over the Czech Republic in Group A of the 2026 World Cup at Guadalajara Stadium in Zapopan, Mexico, on Thursday. [Yonhap]

A BBC commentator praised South Korea coach Hong Myung-bo's substitution tactics after Oh Hyeon-gyu (Besiktas) came off the bench to score the winning goal in the team's comeback victory over the Czech Republic in their 2026 World Cup opener.

South Korea defeated the Czech Republic 2-1 in their Group A opener at Guadalajara Stadium in Zapopan, Mexico, on Friday Korean Standard Time.

South Korea conceded first when Ladislav Krejci (Wolverhampton) scored in the 59th minute, but Hwang In-beom (Feyenoord) equalized in the 67th minute and Oh sealed the comeback with the winner in the 80th. Oh had started on the bench and entered the pitch in the 69th minute as a substitute for captain Son Heung-min (LAFC), scoring just 11 minutes after coming on.

It was Oh's World Cup debut. Clinton Morrison, a former Republic of Ireland international striker now working as a BBC pundit, said: "I didn't think it was the right decision to take off captain Son Heung-min and bring on Oh Hyeon-gyu. But it was the right decision — because Hong Myung-bo brought him on and he decided the game."

At the post-match news conference, Hong said the substitution had been planned. "It was a prepared change," he said. "He put in a great deal of effort and showed excellent performance."

Morrison said South Korea understood the significance of the win and the three points. "This victory will give them a huge amount of confidence going forward in the tournament," he said. He added that he expected South Korea to advance from the group stage to the knockout round, noting that even while trailing, the team "showed their quality and excellence in the attacking third."


ikson@heraldcorp.com