"Performance and all, winning feels uneasy"... Lee Cheonsu's Commentary on Hong Myungbo's Oman Match

"Son Heung-min's Contribution Led to Victory" Evaluation
Criticism of Football Floundering Without Tactics

The South Korean national football team, led by coach Hong Myung-bo, secured their first win with a 3-1 victory in the second leg of the 2026 CONCACAF World Cup third qualifying round away match against Oman. Meanwhile, Lee Chun-soo evaluated, "I am not satisfied with the performance." On the 11th, Lee Chun-soo uploaded a video titled 'Honest Thoughts on the Tactics Against Oman' on his YouTube channel. The video featured live commentary on the match alongside former footballer Ji Byung-joo.

The South Korean national football team, led by coach Hong Myung-bo, secured their first victory with a 3-1 win in the second leg of the third round of the 2026 North and Central America World Cup qualifiers against Oman away. Lee Chun-soo evaluated, "I am not satisfied with the performance."
[Photo by YouTube channel 'Lee Chun-soo']

Lee Chun-soo cheered when Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton) scored a goal just 10 minutes into the game. Lee said, "What did I say? Didn't I tell you to let Hee-chan play? In Asia, it's Hee-chan. Just shoot. It feels so refreshing. What is football? It has to feel this refreshing." However, as Oman continued to create attacking opportunities, Lee said, "If Middle Eastern players get their confidence up, it's a big problem," adding, "It’s getting more and more uneasy. Can't you see Oman is pressing more and playing closer? That means their confidence is coming in." He continued, "It's because their kicks aren't precise. Oman was a bit scared at first, but now that they have loosened up, the second half is dangerous."

Later, Lee Chun-soo asked Ji Byung-joo, "What do you think about Hong Myung-bo's football?" Ji replied, "Cho Hyun-woo makes the saves, Son Heung-min scores the goals, Hwang Hee-chan scores the goals, Kim Min-jae makes the blocks." When, during stoppage time of the first half, a set-piece cross from Oman was headed away by Jeong Seung-hyun but ended up as an own goal, Lee criticized, "What did I say? The anxiety is coming. We keep not attacking and dropping back to defend, so we concede goals. We're strong, so why are we dropping back?"

Then, in the 37th minute of the second half, a goal was scored. Son Heung-min (Tottenham) received a pass from Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain) just outside the opponent’s penalty box, turned with his back to the defender, and curled a left-footed shot into the left corner of the goal. Regarding this moment, Lee said, "It was Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in together. It's over. I could only say 'Wow'." Later, Joo Min-kyu (Ulsan) scored an additional goal in the 56th minute of the second half, defeating Oman 3-1. Lee Chun-soo and Ji Byung-joo celebrated South Korea’s victory but agreed that the performance fell short of expectations. Lee analyzed, "Honestly, I’m not satisfied with the performance, but thankfully we won. Is it because of Heung-min? It feels a bit uneasy, but since the ace Heung-min did it, we won the game." Finally, Lee evaluated, "It's a matter of style. We always talk about what kind of football we play. That kind of style hasn't come out yet."

Meanwhile, with this victory, South Korea secured second place in Group B, which includes Iraq, Jordan, Oman, Kuwait, and Palestine. Jordan took first place by defeating Palestine 3-1 on the same day. The top two teams out of the six in the group will advance to the World Cup finals. After the match, Son Heung-min said at a press conference, "We now have eight matches left in the (third qualifying) round, and we have eight chances to play the best games of our lives," adding, "If we play confidently like today, I believe we can show a very good performance."