Kuala Lumpur: Korea Republic's FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 campaign may have ended in the Round of 16 but the East Asians deserve credit for even getting to the stage after a difficult group stage.
All hope looked lost following their defeat to Ghana but Paulo Bento's side refused to give up.
Group stage results
vs Uruguay 0-0
vs Ghana 2-3
vs Portugal 2-1
Targeting a return to the knockout stage after having missed out in the 2014 and 2018 editions, Korea Republic kicked off their Group H campaign with 0-0 draw with Uruguay, with the South American side having had the better chances.
Up next were a Ghana side who had lost their opener 3-2 against Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal and the strong Korea Republic support was left stunned when the African side raced to a 2-0 lead at half-time.
A more vibrant Korea Republic emerged for the second half at the Education City Stadium and they remarkably pulled themselves back into the tie with Cho Gue-sung (pictured above) scoring twice in three minutes.
Ghana, however, had the final say with Mohammed Kudus scoring the second of his two goals in the 68th minute to seal the points and leave Korea Republic on the brink of elimination.
With both of Group C's final matches kicking off simultaneously, Korea Republic knew a win against already qualified Portugal would not necessarily be enough as either Uruguay or Portugal could also advance.
The East Asians endured the most difficult of starts with Ricardo Horta giving Portugal the lead in the fifth minute.
Kim Young-gwon (pictured above) equalised in the 27th minute only for word to filter through that Uruguay had taken a 2-0 lead against Ghana.
As the clock ticked away, Korea Republic were staring at elimination until a surging run by Son Heung-min culminated with Hwang Hee-chan scoring a stunning winner against the 2016 European champions.
Korea Republic then had to endure an agonising wait for the Ghana-Uruguay result as an additional goal would mean the South Americans would advance on goal difference.
That didn't happen as Korea Republic belatedly celebrated the most unlikeliest of qualifications to the knockout stage.
Round of 16
vs Brazil 1-4
The Round of 16 proved to be a sobering experience for Korea Republic as a rampant Brazil were at their best at Stadium 974.
Vinicius Junior opened the scoring in the seventh minute with Neymar then converting a penalty six minutes later.
Further goals by Richarlison (29th) and Lucas Paqueta (36th) left Korea Republic with a mountain to climb.
A more resilient Korea Republic performance in the second half saw Brazil unable to add to their tally while Paik Seung-ho scored with a spectacular effort for a consolation.
While Korea Republic had failed in their mission to advance to the quarter-finals for only the second time in their history, they would have left Qatar confident that they will return stronger for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Korea Republic coach Paulo Bento said, "I believe we can be very proud of what we have done at this World Cup, and what we have done over the last four years to get here.
"I think we did really well in the group stage although I think we could have picked up more points as we should have beaten Ghana."
Source: AFC
