Following Mexico’s upset of defending champion Germany, the pressure was put on both South Korea and Sweden in their opener. It is not likely that Germany will play that poorly again, so three points was a must for both teams. Neither squad could afford a slip up with each of the group favourites still left to play. Unfortunately, the urgency of needing a win was not displayed by Sweden or South Korea. Each team struggled to create many meaningful chances. Sweden’s Andreas Granqvist converted a penalty for the game’s only goal, and the Swedes were content to sit back and defend after taking the lead. The South Koreans never really threatened in a game disrupted by over 40 fouls.
Sluggish First Half
Both teams struggled to get a hold of the game in the early going. There was no real flow to the match, as both teams committed too many fouls to allow any rhythm. Sweden were able to create a few chances and tried to assert their size advantage on set pieces. South Korea managed to survive these chances with a few timely blocks by defenders and a quick reaction save by their goalie on a header from Marcus Berg.
Each team relies heavily on their midfield play-makers, but neither Emil Forsberg nor Hueng Min Son could make much of an impact in the early stages. The scoreless half ended with each team having a soft penalty shout, but both were waved away by the referee. Sweden had a chance with a corner in the 43rd minute but it was saved comfortably. Another late corner almost led to a goal for the Swedes, but it was headed over the bar.
Andreas Granqvist Separates Two Sides
South Korea did not learn their lesson from the first half and continued to give Sweden set piece opportunities. A 55th minute free kick resulted in a headed chance for the European side, but another great reaction save by Cho Hyun-woo denied them. Shortly after that close call, the game was changed by VAR. After another penalty shout was waved off by the ref, VAR was used to rightfully overturn the call. The Swedish captain Granqvist stepped up to the spot and buried the penalty to give his side a 1-0 lead in the 65th minute.
South Korea began to put some pressure on in the last ten minutes but still could not create many goal scoring chances. Their best chance came in the first minute of stoppage time. A ball into the box was played back across goal, but the headed shot was wide. Sweden was effective in breaking up any chance of rhythm with fouls. Once they took the lead, they were content to pack the defence in front of their box.
Group F: Moving Forward
Sweden now sit atop Group F, level with Mexico on three points. They will take on Germany in their second match on Saturday evening in Sochi. If they can get a result against the defending champions, then they will be in prime position to advance to the knockout round. South Korea will need to regroup, as they face Mexico in Rostov-on-Don that same night. Each of these teams will need to raise their game above the choppy level of play seen today. Sweden were at least able to do their job and get three points.
Main image: Embed from Getty Images
