Son Heung-min said he is enjoying watching Lee Kang-in grow.
The South Korean national soccer team, led by Jürgen Klinsmann, recorded a 5-0 victory over Singapore in the first match of Group C of the second Asian qualifying round for the FIFA Confederations Cup North America 2026 at the Seoul World Cup Stadium at 8 p.m. on Saturday.
It was Klinsmann’s third consecutive multi-goal game, scoring four or more goals against Tunisia and Vietnam in October. After struggling for a while despite Klinsmann’s call for attacking soccer, the Klinsmanns carried the firepower they showed in the two October friendlies into the real world of World Cup qualifying.
The game was one-sided. South Korea drew their line high and began their attacking work from high up the pitch. Hwang In-beom, playing in a three-man midfield, was the focal point of the buildup between the two center backs, while Lee Jae-sung and Son Heung-min moved more freely to exploit the space between the defenses. On the flanks, Hwang Hee-chan and Lee Kang-in worked to open up the defense with their long runs. Up front, Cho Kyu-sung tried to create chances through aggressive defensive contests with his opponents.
However, Singapore’s goal remained firmly closed. Singapore maintained a low defense line and tight spacing, leaving no space for the Korean players. Even in one-on-one situations, they were not pushed around. In fact, it was the Koreans who grew nervous when the goal didn’t come. 무지개토토 주소
Luckily, South Korea’s first goal came just before the end of the first half, as Cho Kyu-sung, who had a goal disallowed midway through the first half due to an offside call, made up for it with a goal just before halftime. Cho rattled the net with a calm finish in a one-on-one situation after receiving a precise cross from Lee Kang-in.
The second half goal came early. Early in the second half, Lee Kang-in created space with a dribbling break, and when he was tripped up by the opposing defense, Cho Kyu-sung picked up the loose ball and sent a cross into the box. Hwang Hee-chan connected with a header for the second goal.
It was a Korean goal party after that. Captain Son Heung-min scored his team’s third goal with a sharp left-footed curler from the ‘Son Heung-min zone’ outside the box, and then substitute Hwang Eui-jo converted a penalty kick earned by Seol Young-woo to drive a wedge into the game. Later in the game, Lee Kang-in capped the scoring with a powerful mid-range shot from outside the box. The game ended with a 5-0 victory for South Korea.
After the game, “Captain” Son Heung-min was interviewed. Son started against Singapore and ran around in the first half to open up space for his teammates, and in the second half, he scored a wonder goal with a sharp left-footed curling shot to get on the scoresheet.
“Regardless of the result, it was not an easy game. The players’ dedication and hard work made this possible. I think there will be more games like this in the future. Today’s game was definitely a good training session. I think we’re doing a lot of homework when we can create a lot of offensive chances.