DOHA: South Korea upset Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal 2-1 to book their spot in the Round of 16 of the ongoing FIFA World Cup as they finished above Luis Suarez’s Uruguay despite their 2-0 triumph over Ghana.
Substitute Hwang Hee-chan scored the match-winning goal for South Korea in injury time to rescue them from the brink of elimination in a thrilling 2-1 victory over Portugal, who had already qualified for the knockout stage.
A much-changed Portugal side took the lead in the fifth minute through Ricardo Horta, who received the ball at the edge of the box from Diogo Dalot and shot it on the first touch into the far corner.
Portugal’s early lead left South Korea to intensify their approach to stand a chance in the qualification race and hit back in the 27th minute through Kim Young-gwon after Ronaldo failed to clear the corner and the ball deflected into the path of the defender who did the rest on the volley.
With the scores settled at 1-1, Portugal continued to repeat the process – dominating possession and passing the ball around – but South Korea kept pushing for the tie-breaker.
The Asian side eventually found one in the stoppage time when Hee-chan when Son Heung-min snatched the ball and ran almost 70 yards before perfectly timing his pass to Hee-chan who fired the winner.
Despite stunning Portugal 2-1, the Korean players stood in a huddle on the pitch watching the other Group H encounter between Uruguay and Ghana on a mobile phone as they awaited their place in the last 16 to be confirmed.
Meanwhile, Giorgian De Arrascaeta double led Uruguay to a 2-0 win over Ghana but it turned out to be insufficient for the South American side to book a spot in the knockouts as South Korea’s late winner saw them leapfrog Suarez’s men.
Tasting triumphs in their last group matches, both South Korea and Uruguay finished the initial round with four points each but the former progressed into the Round of 16 on goals scored.
South Korea will now take on Group G winners in the Round of 16 on Tuesday, while Portugal, who topped Group H despite an upset defeat against South Korea, will take on Group H runners-up on Wednesday.
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