South Africa has entered the knockout stage of the FIFA World Cup by defeating South Korea 1-0. Thapelo Maseko’s goal in the second half gave the team this historic victory.
Monterrey: South Africa has made it to the knockouts of the FIFA World Cup by defeating South Korea 1-0. It was a do-or-die match, with Thapelo Maseko’s goal in the second half giving South Africa a historic victory. Now in the next round, South Africa will face Canada on June 28 in Los Angeles.
After lackluster performances against Mexico and Czech Republic, this time the team came on the field with full energy. A decision of coach Hugo Bruce proved to be the turning point in the match. He included Relebohile Mofokeng in the starting eleven on demand of the fans. Striker Evidence Makgopa also got a place in the starting line-up for the first time, strengthening the team’s attack.
On the other hand, South Korea, who were confident of their place in the knockouts, decided to keep their star player Son Heung-min out of the starting line-up, which cost them dearly. South Africa dominated the match in the first half, but could not score a goal. In the 28th minute, Thapelo Maseko and Thalante Mbatha missed great chances to score. In the second half, South Korea fielded Son Heung-min, but in the 63rd minute, Maseko gave South Africa the lead by scoring a goal. He scored this goal near Shepang Moremi.
In the last minutes of the match, South Korea tried hard to equalize, but goalkeeper Ronwen Williams stood like a wall. He sealed the team’s victory by blocking a brilliant header in the 93rd minute. Yaya Sithole, who returned to the team after the red card, also played well in midfield. Meanwhile, in another match of the group, Mexico topped the group by defeating Czech Republic 3-0.