Czechia and Mexico win final World Cup tuneups; Korea to open vs. Czechia in Group A
Czechia, Mexico both win as South Korea awaits Group A opener; Korea beat Trinidad & Tobago and El Salvador in warmups
L'essentiel
- Czechia and Mexico both secured victory in their final World Cup tuneup matches ahead of Group A play, while South Korea completed their warmups with wins.
- The Koreans will face Czechia in their Group A opener, with Mexico and South Africa also in the group and set for upcoming fixtures in Mexico.
Résumé généré par IA
Pourquoi c'est important
South Korea is preparing for its Group A campaign at the FIFA World Cup, with Czechia and Mexico among the group opponents. Czechia recently beat Kosovo and Guatemala in tuneups, while Mexico defeated Serbia. South Africa is also in Group A and completed a goalless draw with Nicaragua in their warmup.
Two of South Korea's opponents in the group stage at the FIFA World Cup have both won their final tuneup matches.
Czechia, whom South Korea will face to begin Group A action next week, defeated Guatemala 3-1 at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, on Thursday (local time).
Patrik Schick, Tomas Chory and Denis Visinsky were the goal scorers for Czechia, who sit 16 spots below South Korea in the FIFA rankings at No. 41.
Czechia had earlier beat Kosovo 2-1 on Sunday.
Schick scored off a counter break for Czechia in the 11th minute. William Fajardo netted the equalizer for Guatemala in the 40th minute, but then Chory's header in the 72nd minute put the Czechs ahead for good. Visinsky's 79th-minute marker rounded out the scoring.
South Korea also won their final two friendlies before the World Cup, beating Trinidad and Tobago 5-0 and then El Salvador 1-0.
Their match against Czechia will kick off at 8 p.m. next Thursday (local time) at Estadio Guadalajara in Guadalajara, Mexico, or 11 a.m. next Friday (South Korean time).
Also on Thursday, Mexico, one of the tournament's three co-host countries and the top-ranked team in Group A at No. 15, defeated Serbia 5-1 at Estadio Nemesio Diez Riega in Toluca, Mexico.
Following a 1-0 win over Australia on Saturday, Mexico netted three times and got two own goals from Serbia.
Petar Stanic had the match's first goal for Serbia, but Mexico drew level on Johan Vasquez's goal in the 34th minute.
Stefan Bukinac's own goal during stoppage time in the first half gave Mexico a 2-1 lead. Raul Jimenez slotted home a rebound after Julian Quinones struck the right post in the 57th minute for a 3-1 advantage, and then another Serbian own goal, this time by Adem Avdic in the 72nd minute, made it a 4-1 match.
Luis Chavez made it a 5-1 contest with the clocking winding down.
South Korea and Mexico will square off at 7 p.m. June 18 (local time), or 10 a.m. June 19 (South Korean time), at Estadio Guadalajara.
South Africa, the one other team in Group A, had a goalless draw against Nicaragua last Friday in their final friendly before the World Cup.
South Korea and South Africa will meet at 7 p.m. June 24 (local time), or 10 a.m. on June 25 (South Korean time) at Estadio Monterrey in Monterrey.
À surveiller
Perspective IA — des possibilités, pas des certitudes
Czechia and Mexico's strong tuneups increase expectations for competitive Group A play and could influence Korea's opener strategy.
Probable · En quelques semaines
South Korea's group opener against Czechia will be a pivotal match for Group A standings.
Probable · En quelques jours
Mexico's momentum from a 5-1 win could carry into the Korea-Mexico matchup in Guadalajara on June 18.
Possible · En quelques semaines
Questions ouvertes
- Will South Korea’s opener against Czechia set the tone for Group A?
- How will Mexico and South Africa fare in subsequent group-stage matches?
