World Cup

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World Cup | Group Stage

Dec 2, 2022 at 3pm UK

South Korea
2 - 1
Portugal

Young-gwon (27'), Hee-chan (90+1')
Kang-in (36'), Hee-chan (90+2')

FT(HT: 1-1)

Horta (5')

World Cup 2022: Reasons for Portugal to be confident of beating South Korea

By Oliver Thomas, Senior Reporter | 01 December 2022

Ahead of Friday's World Cup Group H clash between South Korea and Portugal, Sports Mole looks at three reasons why Portugal should be confident of claiming all three points.

Portugal head into their final Group H clash against South Korea at the Education City Stadium on Friday having already qualified for the last 16 of the 2022 World Cup.

Fernando Santos's side secured all three points in an entertaining 3-2 opening victory against Ghana before beating Uruguay 2-0 in their second match on Monday.

A Selecao are guaranteed a top-two spot in Group H, but they can secure their place at the summit with at least a draw against South Korea, who are yet to win in Qatar under Lisbon-born manager Paulo Bento.

Here, Sports Mole takes a look at three reasons why Portugal will be confident of beating South Korea in their final Group H fixture.

South Korea's record against European opposition

South Korea players pose for a team group photo before the match in September 2022 © Reuters

While Portugal have lost only three of their last 18 internationals across all competitions, A Selecao can also draw inspiration from South Korea's struggles against European opposition.

The Asian outfit have only won five of their 23 encounters against European nations at the World Cup, suffering defeat on 12 of those occasions in the process.

South Korea have conceded 47 goals and have kept just five clean sheets across their 23 meetings with European teams, while they have drawn a blank in front of goal on nine occasions.

Overall, the Tigers of Asia have lost five of their last seven World Cup games, as many as in their previous 16 in the competition, form which bodes well for Portugal ahead of Friday's clash.

Fast starts key to success

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates on November 23, 2022 © Reuters

Portugal boast an impressive record of never losing a World Cup match when scoring first, and they will be keen to make a fast start on Friday as they bid to maintain their 100% record in Qatar.

A Selecao have won 15 and drawn three of their 18 games when scoring the opening goal, more than any other nation in World Cup history.

Indeed, Portugal have broken the deadlock in both of their first two matches at the 2022 World Cup, although they had to wait until the second half to score their opening goal in the wins over Ghana and Uruguay.

Nevertheless, with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes, Rafael Leao and Joao Felix all fit and raring to go, Santos will be confident that his side can breach South Korea's backline, which conceded twice in the opening 34 minutes against Ghana last time out.

Fantastic Bruno Fernandes form

Portugal's Joao Felix celebrates scoring their second goal with teammates Joao Cancelo and Bruno Fernandes on November 23, 2022 © Reuters

While legendary forward Cristiano Ronaldo is sure to make the headlines on Friday, Bruno Fernandes has arguably been Portugal's most impressive player so far in Qatar and his form for the national team has not gone unnoticed.

A week before Portugal's World Cup campaign began, the Manchester United midfielder scored two goals in the first 45 minutes of Portugal's 4-0 friendly win over Nigeria.

Since then, Fernandes has contributed to four of Portugal's five goals in Qatar, providing two assists on his 50th international appearance in the 3-2 opening victory over Ghana before netting a brace in the 2-0 win against Uruguay on Monday.

Fernandes is only the second player this century to have registered multiple goals and assists in a country's first two group-stage games at a World Cup – along with France striker Karim Benzema in 2014 – and the 28-year-old playmaker will be hoping to inspire Portugal to another three points on Friday.