South Korea came from behind to claim a hard-fought 2-1 victory over the Czech Republic in an entertaining Group A encounter at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, played at Estadio Akron in Mexico on Friday morning.
The Taegeuk Warriors were the brighter side from the outset and nearly found an early breakthrough inside the opening 15 minutes.
Lee Han-beom rose highest to meet a cross but directed his close-range header narrowly over the bar before Lee Kang-in tested goalkeeper Matej Kovar with a powerful effort from distance, forcing the Czech shot-stopper into an important save.
The Czech Republic gradually settled into the contest, with captain Tomas Soucek firing wide from a promising position following a corner shortly before the first-half hydration break.
Despite South Korea’s dominance, clear-cut opportunities remained scarce. Son Heung-min squandered the best chance of the opening half in the 39th minute when he dragged his shot wide after a brilliant individual run, and the sides went into the break deadlocked at 0-0.
South Korea resumed with renewed purpose after halftime and immediately put the Czech defence under pressure.
Kovae was called into action on several occasions, denying Hwang In-beom and Lee Jae-sung before producing an outstanding save to keep out Son’s effort midway through the second half.
Those missed opportunities almost proved costly.
Against the run of play, the Czech Republic broke the deadlock just before the hour mark when Vladimir Coufal’s long throw was flicked on by captain Ladislav Krejci, whose header found the back of the net beyond Kim Seung-gyu for his sixth international goal.
However, the lead lasted only eight minutes. South Korea finally found a way past the inspired Kovar when Hwang In-beom calmly finished to restore parity and set up a dramatic final quarter.
The Czech Republic thought they had regained the lead with less than 15 minutes remaining when Soucek powered home a header, only for celebrations to be cut short by an offside flag.
That decision proved pivotal, as just three minutes later, substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu completed the turnaround, latching onto a perfectly weighted pass from Hwang In-beom before steering the ball past Kovar from close range to hand South Korea the lead for the first time in the match.
The drama continued deep into the closing stages as the Czechs pushed desperately for an equaliser. Substitute Adam Hlozek came agonisingly close, but his close-range effort was brilliantly turned around the post by Kim Seung-gyu.
South Korea ultimately held firm to secure all three points and move into a strong position ahead of a mouth-watering clash against co-hosts Mexico next Friday.
The Czech Republic, on the other hand, will look to bounce back against South Africa on Thursday, after seeing their six-match unbeaten run come to an end.
