As far as Asian sides go, South Korea have always been regarded as a consistent performer on the world scene, appearing in eight consecutive World Cups. Even though they’ve always been there in recent years, they were actually relatively late arrivals with the Taegeuk Warriors first appearing in 1954, before returning again in 1986.
Things however weren’t as smooth when they first rose onto the scene. In their debut campaign the Koreans conceded 16 goals in only two games, woefully going down to Hungary and Turkey 9-0 and 7-0 respectively.
Success in the prestigious Asian Cup did arrive shortly after, with the Taegeuk Warriors winning the 1956 and 1960 tournaments, but in the next two decades they rattled through over 20 managers in search of a return to World Cup football.
Despite the Asian Cup success, the Koreans waited a staggering 32 years before making it to the World Cup again. Under the tutelage of coach Kim Jung-nam and the era of all-time record goalscorer, and national hero, Cha Bum-kun they finally returned to the promised land in 1986. Steady, yet unspectacular, South Korea became a mainstay of World Cup football picking up draws against the likes of Spain and Belgium.
Despite appearing in four consecutive World Cups, the South Koreans entered the 2002 tournament still searching for their first win, and the pressure had mounted due to South Korea co-hosting the tournament with Japan – in what was and still is the first ever Asian World Cup.
While there was no disputing that the stadiums and facilities were all world class, it was feared that the national team was nowhere near good enough. Dutchman Guus Hiddink brought a decent reputation with him when he arrived as coach in 2000, but poor results such as the 5-0 defeat to France at the 2001 Confederations Cup had fans fearing the worst.
The Taegeuk Warriors would more than step up to the task though, and in their first group game picked up their maiden World Cup victory, as goals from Hwang Sun-hong and Yoo Sang-chul gave them a 2-0 victory over Poland.
With Group D favourites Portugal slipping up in their opening match, the South Korean public started to believe qualification was possible, and a 1-1 draw with USA in their next game put them in a solid position to do so.
Their next game however would be against the Portuguese themselves, but with disciplined defending South Korea managed to keep the mercurial Luis Figo quiet. Joao Pinto and Beto were both sent-off afterwards before Park Ji-sung’s 70th minute strike won the game and group for the Koreans- setting up an arduous Round of 16 tie with Italy.
Little did the South Koreans know that the game against Italy would go down in World Cup history. After only 18 minutes Christian Vieri gave the Azzurri the lead before Seol Ki-hyeon equalised in the 88th minute sending the game into a golden goal extra time. With only three minutes of extra-time left to play then Perugia striker Ahn Jung-hwan guided his header into the back of the net to send Korea to the quarter finals.
South Korea would then meet Spain in the quarter-finals, and the organisation Hiddink instilled in his charges meant that the Spanish – missing Raul – could not break through, and the game went to penalties.
In front of a hysterical crowd in Gwangju, Spain’s Joaquin missed, to give current coach – and record cap-holder – Hong Myung-bo, the chance to send his nation through to a World Cup semi-final. Myung-bo stepped up and duly sent the Taegeuk Warriors into the semi-finals.
However, three-time winners Germany would finally end the South Korean dream in the semi-finals, and then Turkey would also defeat them in the third place play-off.
In 2006, South Korea were eliminated in the Group Stages in a group containing Switzerland, Togo, and eventual runners-up France. In fact, the Taegeuk Warriors were leading France by two points before losing to Switzerland in the last game allowing Les Bleus to progress to the Round of 16 with a win over Togo.
In 2010 however, the Koreans did manage to make it to the Round of 16 only to be eliminated by eventual semi-finalists Uruguay in the final minutes of the game, leaving the team in despair.
