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| Forward Cho Gue-sung scored South Korea's lone goal in their 1-0 victory at Saida International Stadium in Sidon, south of Beirut. (Photo from World Soccer Tak) |
[Asia News = Reporter Reakkana] SEOUL: With their longtime captain and attacking force Son Heung-min sidelined with an injury, South Korea looked elsewhere for an offense against Lebanon in their latest World Cup qualifying match on Thursday. And they found it from the new-look attacking duo up front. Forward Cho Gue-sung scored South Korea's lone goal in their 1-0 victory at Saida International Stadium in Beirut. It was set up by a gorgeous feed from his forward partner, Hwang Ui-jo, with the clock ticking down on the first half.
When all of his top players are available, head coach Paulo Bento often deploys Hwang as the lone striker, with the likes of Son and Hwang Hee-chan, who also missed this game with an injury, backing him up on the wings. This time, Bento paired Hwang Ui-jo with Cho, an emerging offensive option who celebrated his 24th birthday on Tuesday. Hwang has been South Korea's top scorer since Bento's tenure begin in August 2018 with 13 goals, while Cho was playing in just his seventh match. Cho had scored his first international goal in a friendly victory over Iceland on Jan. 15.
Hwang, who wasn't called up for the friendly, said this week that he had taken note of Cho's play and come away impressed.
