JOB DONE: Mexico qualify for WC Last 32
by Kickoff Reporter · KickOffMexico have qualified for the FIFA World Cup last 32 after defeating South Korea 1-0 on Friday mornnig.
Fixture: Mexico v South Korea
Score: 1-0
Goalscorers: Romo (50')
The Mexicans started their campaign with a 2-0 win over South Africa last week in the tournament opener, but they were without the services of Cesar Montes who was sent off in the game.
Korea, meanwhile, staged an impressive come-from-behind 2-1 win over Czech Republic in their opening game seven days ago.
The two nations have met on two previous occasions in the World Cup, with the Mexicans claiming victory on both occasions in 1998 and 2018.
Despite the previous encounters, neither side were able to find the breakthrough in the opening 45 minutes, which proved to be quite a dull affair, as Heung-Min Son went closest wih a shot that was blocked in the opening.
However, disaster struck for the Koreans five minutes after the break when goalkeeper Seung-Gyu Kim's poor error gifted the ball to Luis Romo, who pounced in the box and fired into an empty net, much to the delight of the home.
The Koreans threw everything forward in search of an equaliser in the latter stages of the second half, but they were unable to carve out any serious chances until the final two minutes when Gue-Sung Cho saw his header from point-blank range kept out by goalkeeper Raul Rangel.
Mexico held in the closing stages to secure the win, which saw them qualify for the round of 32 as group winners, while Korea will now look to qualify against South Africa next Thursday.
Next Fixtures:
Mexico:
1. Czech Republic
Korea:
1. South Africa