Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Goyang: Coach Choi Kang-hee is hoping for an early goal to settle any nerves in Tuesday's FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Lebanon as Korea Republic look to maintain their 100% start to the final round campaign in Group A.
The Koreans have made the trip back home from Doha after posting a 4-1 comeback win on Friday and welcome a Lebanon side who drew 1-1 with Uzbekistan having begun their campaign with a 1-0 defeat by Qatar last week.
And while Korea beat the Cedars 6-0 at the start of the third round campaign at Goyang Stadium in September last year, Choi knows his side face a tough task to collect a second victory to remain on course for an eighth consecutive appearance at the FIFA World Cup finals.
"We're training well with a great atmosphere after coming back home with such a nice win," said former Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors coach Choi.
"Although we have to overcome the same difficulties – adapting to the time difference – as our opponents, we've got to recover from fatigue and believe in our mental strengths in order to win the games to come.
"We did beat them 6-0 here last year, but as we've experienced around the continent it's always difficult to play against defensive-minded teams. If we fail to score early and become nervous in the second half, it could be very difficult for us. We need all three points after all, so we'll play well enough to get what we want."
Ulsan Hyundai trio Lee Keun-ho, Kwak Tae-hwi and Kim Shin-wook scored on Friday as Korea came from behind in Doha to start the final round of qualifiers with an emphatic win.
Kim, whose second-half strike was his first at international level, will miss the visit of Lebanon after also picking up his second yellow card of the tournament on Friday.
"It's also important not to allow them to counter-attack, while we should try to break down their defence through set-pieces and shots from distance," added Choi.
"We've got some good wide players as well, so we'll be able to beat them if we play our own football."
Lebanon also had to come from behind on Friday to pick up their first point in Group A, although Ali Al Saadi's first-half free-kick was only enough to earn Theo Bucker's side a point against Uzbekistan in Beirut following their opening day defeat by Qatar.
Bucker's side did beat Korea 2-1 at home in their last meeting in November last year and the German coach is confident Lebanon have made significant improvements and should avoid a repeat of the 6-0 defeat in Goyang when the two sides last met.
"Tomorrow's match will be a challenge for us. We remember we were well beaten here last time and in fact, we're not expecting too much this time around. That said, we'll do our best to get the best possible result," said Bucker.
"When we came last year we were under-prepared because of the fixtures in the local professional league, and we were also unlucky because the players had to come through a Ramadan period just before the match. But in the mean time we've shown progress through training and become a different side, so I'm hoping to see a different result tomorrow."
Lebanon are again set to be without iconic captain Roda Antar due to injury, with the Shandong Luneng midfielder sidelined for up to six weeks with ligament damage.
"We're facing the problem of time difference, which is actually the biggest issue in preparing for the match," added Bucker.
"Some say we'll play defensively tomorrow, but our boys will play depending on the situations and try to get possession of the ball. Nobody will be excused for focusing solely on attack or defence."