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Korean soccer ends the year on a losing note

November 19, 2013

Hong Myung-bo’s squad falls to Russian side with only two starters 2-1

Korean players couldn't hide their disappointment. (Yonhap)

Korean players couldn’t hide their disappointment. (Yonhap)

Korean soccer ended the the year on a losing note, as they fell to Russia 2-1 in Dubai on Tuesday.

At UAE’s Zabeel Stadium, it took only six minutes for Korean side to strike first, as their new-found 6′ 6″ striker Kim Shin-wook scored with right-foot off a goalmouth scramble following Ki Sung-yueng’s corner kick. That lead was short-lived, however, as it also only took six minutes for Russia to equalize the score, when Fedor Smolov met Roman Shirokov’s cross from the right.

Dmitri Tarasov headed in the go-ahead goal in the 58th minute as the 19th-ranked Russians came back from a 1-0 deficit against No. 56 South Korea.

Both sides have qualified for next year’s World Cup in Brazil, and Russia coach Fabio Capello used the match to continue trying out younger players – choosing only two of his regular starters for the game. ”I’m very satisfied. I wanted to look at the players at work at this high level, and all the debutants looked great,” said Capello.