Korean men's football head coach Hong Myung-bo arrives at Incheon International Airport, Thursday, after Korea played and drew against Palestine in Jordan, Tuesday, in their Group B match in the third round of the Asian World Cup qualifiers. Yonhap

Korean men's football head coach Hong Myung-bo said Thursday he'd like to see his team tighten up their defense in order to take the next step.

Hong returned home Thursday from Jordan, where Korea settled for a 1-1 draw against Palestine on Tuesday in their Group B match in the third round of the Asian World Cup qualifiers. Last Thursday, Korea had beaten Kuwait 3-1 in Kuwait City.

The draw against Palestine snapped Korea's winning streak at four. The Taegeuk Warriors still lead Group B with 14 points, three ahead of Iraq with four matches remaining.

The top two teams from the group will punch their tickets to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Korea has played at every World Cup since 1986.

In six matches, Korea has conceded five goals, all of them against teams sitting far below them in the FIFA rankings. Korea have been prone to momentary lapses of concentration in their own zone and Hong, widely regarded as one of the best defenders in Korean football history, said his team remains a work in progress in that area.

"We have to be better on defense, especially against set pieces, but I think we will need time more than anything else," Hong told reporters at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul. "I think we are much better now than when we started (the third round in September) and the players are communicating with each other better on the field. However, we won't be good enough the way we are right now if we go up against stronger opponents. In order for us to reach a higher level, we have to shore up our defense."

Hong said he was mostly satisfied with grabbing four points from two away matches this month, but not beating 100th-ranked Palestine still gnawed at him.

"It's a shame that we couldn't break through their tight defense. There are ways to do it but it will take time for us to be able to execute them," Hong said. "There are moments from that match that I wish would have gone differently. We have to be better prepared for upcoming matches."

Korean national football team captain Son Heung-min reacts to a referee's call during a Group B match between Korea and Palestine in the third round of the Asian World Cup qualifiers in Jordan, Tuesday, local time. Yonhap

The Palestine goal came off a turnover by the usually-reliable Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae, whose back pass to goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo was intercepted.

Hong came to Kim's defense, saying, "A mistake like that can happen any time."

"I told him I was sorry that I'd been playing him so much," Hong said with a smile. "He has been doing so much for this team in difficult situations, and I hope he can shake this off and continue to play well for his club. I think all the positive things he has done for us far outnumber his mistakes."

Hong took over the team in July amid controversial circumstances, with the Korea Football Association taking considerable heat for not sticking to a proper vetting process to bring Hong aboard. Over the recent weeks, though, calls for Hong's head have mostly died down as the team started winning hard-fought matches.

Hong said he has mostly blocked out noise from outside the team.

"From the first day on the job, my focus has only been on getting this team through the World Cup qualification," Hong said. "I haven't thought about anything else."

That Palestine match was also the last one of 2024 for Korea. Their World Cup qualifying campaign will resume in March next year with back-to-back home matches against Oman and Jordan. Korea will visit Iraq on June 5 and host Kuwait on June 10 to close out the third round.

Korea finished the year with 10 wins, six draws and one loss. Their next set of matches will be in March 2025.

"This has been a difficult journey and I think the players have handled it really well," Hong said. "Players traveling from Europe have had to deal with jetlag and fatigue, among other issues. I think they've done a tremendous job. And I haven't had to tell them anything special about teamwork. They know exactly what they're supposed to do, and I've seen a lot of positive things from this group." (Yonhap)