Match #30 - South Korea v. Ghana

Ghana's pace seems to be faster than Uruguay but their defense is not well organized. We have to press Ghana's back four from their final third to regain possession quickly and utilize strength of Son. Kim Min-jae, Lee Jae-sung, and Jeong Woo-young will be required to cover wider range to disrupt Ghana's counterattacking game.

 

The match time in NYC (US EST) is 8am, not 5am.

 

Ghanas defence is very well organized.

They held the Portugese attack in check until the refs awarded Ronaldo a fake PK.

The other goals scored were a result of poor turnovers from subs in the midfield, wasn't really on the defence.

Anyways Ghana will not play so defensive against Korea, so there will be more space. Korea will have a much tougher game than the one against Uruguay, which I thought Korea was the better team.

 

That PK was softer than my pillow. Pretty weak. Can't call that.

 

The referee has a very bad reputation. He does not call much so the game gets rough but he pulls red easily. So Ghana will rough up Koreans with impunity and if Koreans show irritation and if he sees anything even remotely retaliatory Korea will get reds. Son was sent off by this referee a few years ago in a similar fashion.
His name is Anthony Taylor.

He is a type who loves his authority and wants a piece of action in the game.

 

In.

 

I am guilty of it myself but the biggest folly in soccer or in any other sports is that if your country wins against all odds you tend to think of it as a special quality of your race or your ethnicity or your nationality. In reality luck has more to to do with the outcome than any other. Likewise losing is no sign of your moral failure. If you are too boastful and lose like Japan did that is a little embarrassing. But no one will laugh at Korea if Korea lose because most Koreans highly respect the opponents.

In sports like baseball good teams often lose to poor teams. In American Football it happens less often. Soccer is somewhere in between. Soccer is a game of chance like any other sports. Koreans should come to accept that in 2002 they were mainly just lucky. The myth that Koreans came together as one mind and one people and created a miracle is nice to believe but it kept burdening Koreans for generations. That is because Koreans think they did not do their best after 2002 and still feel that Koreans need to show the world something.

Koreans have nothing to show, no need to show to the world. And soccer is not the best way to show it anyway.
No need to feel embarrassed about loss, no need to gloat over the victory either.

We are not in a medieval Meso-America where the winners get to rip open losers' chest , take out their hearts and offer them to the gods. It is just a game of chance.

 

How the coach came to conclusion that what Ghana is missing is both Ayew's on the field is a mystery. Good to see Lamptey and Gideon Mensah (better than Rahman)

 

Korea started the better.

 

Africa in first round 2 pts, 2 goals
Africa in second round 7 pts (not counting this game), 9 goals (so far)

Good they woke up

 

Africa in first round 2 pts, 2 goals
Africa in second round 7 pts (not counting this game), 10 goals (so far)

 

Korea making things very interesting now.

 

2-2!

 

HOOOOLLLLYYYYY!!!!!

 

3-2 Ghana!

 

Astonishing game!

 

Defender saved the keeper on that shot.

 

Is this the best day of the World Cup so far?

Serbia 3-3 Cameroon and now South Korea vs Ghana? I want South Korea to score a third.

 

I am not a fan of bad defending but it does keep things exciting.

 

Ghana living dangerously

 

Ghana with a hard fought three points.

Africa came to play these match day #2s for the most part.

 

And the Korean coach gets a red card , I mean come on let them take that last corner man