Scoreless against underdog ranked 96th in FIFA rankings
Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in miss consecutive crucial chances
The South Korean national football team, newly led by coach Hong Myung-bo, struggled against Palestine, a relatively easy opponent, and ended their first match of the 2026 CONCACAF World Cup Asian third qualifying round in a draw.
On the 5th, the national team played against Palestine in the first match of Group B in the 2026 CONCACAF World Cup Asian third qualifying round at Seoul World Cup Stadium, ending 0-0 without any goals. Palestine's FIFA ranking is 96th, the second lowest among the six teams in Group B, 73 places below South Korea (23rd). Given that it was a home game, a victory was naturally expected, but the team only secured one point as key players Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in repeatedly missed near-goal opportunities.
Coach Hong employed a 4-2-3-1 formation against Palestine. Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in took charge of the left and right attacks, respectively, with Joo Min-gyu as the lone forward. Lee Jae-sung was positioned centrally in the second line. Jung Woo-young and Hwang In-beom managed the midfield, while the back four defense consisted of Seol Young-woo, Kim Young-gwon, Kim Min-jae, and Hwang Moon-ki. Jo Hyeon-woo guarded the goal.
Coach Hong Myung-bo is comforting captain Son Heung-min, who is disappointed after a 0-0 draw against Palestine in the first match of the third round of the 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup qualifiers held on the 5th at Seoul World Cup Stadium. Photo by Yonhap News
The first half was frustrating. South Korea's first shot came only in the 17th minute.
In fact, around the 22nd minute of the first half, Palestine scored from a set-piece, but the goal was ultimately ruled offside. Palestine put the ball into the net twice with headers after a free kick, but the first header was confirmed to be offside, leading to the goal being canceled.
After a lackluster first half, Coach Hong made a substitution at the start of the second half, replacing forward Joo Min-gyu with Oh Se-hun. At the 13th minute of the second half, Lee Jae-sung was substituted out for Hwang Hee-chan to intensify the attack.
The second half saw more lively offense. Several decisive chances were created, but no goals were scored.
At the 15th minute of the second half, Son Heung-min drew multiple defenders to the center and passed the ball to Lee Kang-in, who was charging in from the right. Facing the opposing goalkeeper one-on-one, Lee curled a left-footed shot, but unfortunately, the ball flew well over the top of the goal.
At the 25th minute, Lee Kang-in dribbled just outside the opponent's arc, drawing a foul. From the resulting critical free kick, Lee attempted a left-footed curling shot, which was on target, but the ball veered slightly toward the center and was saved by the opposing goalkeeper.
At the 34th minute, Lee Kang-in delivered a long pass that broke through the defense to Son Heung-min. Son appeared to have a decisive one-on-one chance with the goalkeeper, but his touch was a bit too long, and the ball was easily collected by the opposing goalkeeper.
Son Heung-min had an even more critical chance at the 42nd minute of the second half. After bypassing the goalkeeper, he shot toward the empty net, but the ball hit the right post hard and bounced out.
South Korea pressed hard afterward but failed to open the scoring. In fact, near the end of the second half, they faced repeated counterattack threats from the opponent.
Coach Hong Myung-bo, who faced criticism from fans during his return as the national team head coach, had to accept a bitter result in his official comeback match after 10 years. It has been 10 years and 3 months since Hong last officially managed the national team, during the 2014 Brazil World Cup group stage third match against Belgium (0-1 loss). The crowd filling the stadium booed every time Hong appeared on camera.
Korean national soccer team captain Son Heung-min is showing disappointment after a 0-0 draw against Palestine in the first match of the third round of the 2026 CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers held on the 5th at Seoul World Cup Stadium. [Photo by Yonhap News]
This match failed to sell out for the first time in 11 months for a home game of the national team. The attendance was 59,579, and according to the Korea Football Association, 4,598 seats remained unsold. This was the first time since the friendly against Tunisia at Seoul World Cup Stadium on October 13 last year that tickets for a home match of the national team did not sell out, approximately 11 months ago.
The 2026 CONCACAF World Cup Asian third qualifying round features 18 teams divided into three groups of six teams each. Each team plays 10 matches in a home-and-away format. The top two teams from each group qualify directly for the World Cup finals, while the third and fourth place teams in each group compete in the fourth qualifying round to determine final qualification.
The Hong Myung-bo-led team will play their second third-round qualifying match against Oman at Sultan Qaboos Stadium in Muscat, Oman, at 11 PM Korean time on the 10th. The team will depart from Incheon International Airport on the morning of the 7th, transit through Doha, Qatar, and then proceed to Muscat, Oman.
Meanwhile, team captain Son Heung-min marked his 128th A-match appearance, surpassing commentator Lee Young-pyo (127 matches) to become the sole fourth-highest in A-match appearances.
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