Jürgen Klinsmann made a successful start to the World Cup qualification with the South Korean national football team. The round of 16 in the final round from Qatar defeated Singapore 5-0 (1-0) in Seoul on Thursday (November 16th, 2023).
The second round is currently beginning for the teams from Asia on the way to the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico. The teams in first and second place in the nine groups of four will advance to the third round, in which the first World Cup tickets will be awarded.
Captain Heung-Min Son scored for Klinsmann’s team to make it 3-0. Defender Min-Jae Kim from FC Bayern was in the starting line-up, as was Jae-Sung Lee from Mainz. Woo-Yeong Jeong (VfB Stuttgart) came on as a substitute. In Group C, China and Thailand are the other opponents.
Japan and Australia successful
Germany’s World Cup shock Japan beat Myanmar 5-0 (3-0) thanks to three goals from striker Ayase Ueda (Feyenoord Rotterdam). Ritsu Doan from Freiburg and Daichi Kamada from Frankfurt also met in Suita. Düsseldorf’s Ao Tanaka, like Doan and Kamada, played from the start. Other opponents in Group B are North Korea and Syria.
In Group I, World Cup round of 16 team Australia started with a befitting 7-0 (4-0) against Bangladesh in Melbourne. Jackson Irvine and Connor Metcalfe from FC St. Pauli were in the starting lineup. The next opponents of the “Socceroos” are Palestine and Lebanon.