South Korea Meets South Africa in World Cup Group A Decider

South Korea will face South Africa on Wednesday in the final Group A match of the FIFA World Cup at Estadio Monterrey in Guadalupe, Mexico. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. local time, or 10 a.m. Thursday in South Korea.

A win or draw will place South Korea second in the group regardless of the simultaneous Mexico-Czechia result in Mexico City. South Korea holds three points after a 2-1 victory over Czechia on June 11 and a 1-0 loss to Mexico on June 18. Mexico leads with six points and has already secured first place and the group's first knockout berth.

Czechia and South Africa each have one point. The top two teams from each of the 12 groups advance automatically, along with the eight best third-place teams overall. South Korea, ranked 25th by FIFA, is favored against 60th-ranked South Africa.

South Africa has conceded a goal in the opening 10 minutes of each of its first two matches. The team will be without midfielders Themba Zwane, who received a three-match ban after a red card against Mexico, and Teboho Mokoena, who is suspended after collecting his second yellow card against Czechia. South Korea reached the knockout stage in 2002, 2010 and 2022.

Captain Son Heung-min started as striker in both prior matches but was substituted in the 69th minute against Czechia and the 57th minute against Mexico. Oh Hyeon-gyu replaced him and scored the decisive goal against Czechia. South Korean players trained at Chivas Verde Valle in Zapopan on June 19 ahead of the match.