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By Kim Tae-jong
Uli Stielike's experiments in his coaching debut for South Korea's national football team proved successful against Paraguay, Friday, as his men defeated their opponents 2-0.
Before the match, the German boss expressed his intention to address the team's main weakness ― a lack of decisiveness resulting in numerous failures to capitalize on chances.
But in the friendly match in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, the South Koreans pushed the Paraguayans hard right from the beginning. As a result, they dominated the match.
Under the new coach's leadership, Kim Min-woo scored the first goal in the 27th minute and Nam Tae-hee netted another in the 32nd. Interestingly enough, both moments marked the players' debut goals in the international A match.
In the second half, Stielike continued experimenting with his roster, injecting new players and strengthening the team's offense.
First, Bayer Leverkusen winger Son Heung-min replaced Lee Chung-yong. Then, 14 minutes later, Lee Dong-gook ― at 35, the oldest player on the team ― was called up to replace midfielder Cho Young-cheol.
Minutes later, Lee Myeong-ju and Park Jong-woo were also put in action to replace Nam Tae-hee and Swansea City midfielder Ki Sung-yueng, respectively. With just five minutes remaining, Kim Young-gwon replaced Kim Ki-hee.
Despite their continuous attacking efforts and chances, they failed to score another goal, but it seemed meaningful that the coach employed different tactics with different players on a roster that includes a group of veterans as well as new faces.
But the match also gave the coach some other concerns, as his team's defense line was occasionally distracted and allowed the Paraguayans some critical chances ― although their attempts were successfully denied by Kim Jin-hyeon, who had long been considered only as a backup for the team's No. 1 goalkeeper, Kim Seung-gyu.
With the victory, the Taeguk Warriors have extended their winning streak to three, with victories in every friendly match since their dismal campaign in the Brazil World Cup, which led Stielike's predecessor Hong Myung-bo to resign.
Last month, the Koreans had two matches, just days after Stielike's appointment. With the new coach watching, the Koreans defeated Venezuela 3-1 and lost to Uruguay 1-0.
After Paraguay, South Korea will take on Costa Rica next Tuesday in Seoul.
