Poor pitch conditions in Seoul back in spotlight following S. Korea’s draw vs. Palestine

Seoul World Cup Stadium has been regarded as the mecca of South Korean football for the past two decades or so, ever since it was built ahead of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, co-hosted by South Korea and Japan.

However, its pitch conditions haven’t matched the stadium’s sterling reputation. And the dismal pitch shape came into focus once again Thursday night, after South Korea settled for a 0-0 draw against underdogs Palestine in a World Cup qualifying match.

The issue is not new for Seoul World Cup Stadium. In addition to serving as home of the K League 1 club FC Seoul and hosting national team matches, the stadium also holds music concerts and other non-sporting events.

Prior to the Palestine match, FC Seoul hosted Gangwon FC on Aug. 24 on the bumpy and patchy pitch. FC Seoul head coach Kim Gi-dong even apologized to fans and Gangwon FC for such bad shape of the playing surface.

Kim also noted that players could have been injured and asked for better management of the field.

But the coach’s plea apparently fell on deaf ears, because the pitch wasn’t that much better Thursday night.

In the first half, South Korean players failed to connect on simple passes on several occasions, and the subpar pitch condition could be at least partly blamed for that. Captain Son Heung-min said it was difficult to dribble and control the ball throughout the evening.

“We weren’t able to play at a high tempo and I am sure fans were disappointed with that,” Son said. “I hope conditions will get better when we play here. The fact that pitch conditions are better for away matches is a shame, but I also think it’s fortunate for us at the same time.”

To their credit, other players refused to use the pitch as a crutch for the result.

“Obviously, it’d be nice to have played in better conditions, but I really don’t want to make an excuse,” said midfielder Lee Kang-in, the lone bright spot for South Korea on offense. He was responding to a question about whether the pitch shape had affected his uncharacteristically poor shooting in the second half.

“I had such an easy opportunity but couldn’t convert it. That’s why we didn’t win that match,” Lee said of his off-target shot in the 60th minute when he was wide open on the right side of the box. “I’ll have to get better than that, and I will try to become a player who can convert those chances.”

Defender Kim Min-jae said players have to deal with the cards they were dealt.

“The pitch wasn’t great but that’s part of the game,” Kim said. “I don’t want to use that as an excuse.”