Jürgen Klinsmann’s 10th match is just one day away, and the trip to China is likely to be the most “challenging” since Klinsmann’s inception.
I’m curious to see how the team will fare, especially if they concede an early goal.
Jürgen Klinsmann’s men’s national football team will face China away at the Shenzhen Universiade Sports Center in Guangdong, China, at 9 p.m. KST on June 21 in the second Group C match of the 2026 North American Football Championship Asia Second Qualifying Round.
After a 5-0 victory over Singapore in the first leg on Sept. 16 at home at Seoul World Cup Stadium, South Korea will travel to China for the second leg on Sept. 19.
This will be Klinsmann’s 10th game in charge since taking over in March. His only previous away games were against Wales in September’s A match and a neutralized match against Saudi Arabia in England. They won 0-0 in Wales and 1-0 in the neutralized match against Saudi Arabia.
With such a small number of away games, one can’t help but wonder how South Korea will fare away from home in unfamiliar territory. China may be two or three levels below Korea, but their very rough soccer, the one-sided support of the Chinese crowd, and the unfamiliar climate and environment will prove to be a challenge for the Korean players.
Even Hwang Sun-hong, who eventually won the gold medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games, had to come to terms with the unexpected result of 1-1 after two games in China in June.
And there’s something Klinsmann hasn’t experienced yet. Conceding an early goal away from home. With only two games away from home and the only real away game being against Wales, it’s not surprising, but when you concede an early goal away from home, things never go well. 무지개토토
Of course, conceding an early goal against China is unlikely. But soccer balls are round and there are always surprises, whether it’s a set piece or a wonder goal. If, in this case, the unthinkable happens and China plays “ten-back” soccer to defend a goal and treats the Korean players roughly, the game could be difficult.
In the Singapore game, they scored four goals in the second half to win comfortably, but the first goal didn’t come until the 44th minute, and the game was really frustrating until then. In the end, we need to push hard from the beginning of the game to get an early goal, and if we concede an early goal, the game could go wrong. Especially when you’ve never done it before.
It shouldn’t happen, but how will Klinsmann’s side cope if they concede an away goal in China for the first time? That’s why the early stages of the match are so important.