Russia and South Korea open up their World Cup accounts in Cuiaba in the last first match of Group H round robin play. This game may end up deciding which team joins Belgium in the next round, as the Belgians are heavy favorites to advance and Algeria, the last team in the group, are well below the quality of both the Russians and the Koreans. The Koreans come into the clash on a run of really poor form, having dropped four of their last five pre-World Cup matches, while the Russians are without their captain and star player Roman Shirokov, who suffered a back injury an is out for the tournament.
Russian coach Fabio Capello, the former England manager, will fancy his sides chances against a stubborn South Korea side is making its eighth consecutive World Cup appearance. The Russians qualified atop their group, which also included Portugal, dropping only two games -- one to the Portuguese, and another surprise defeat at the hands of Northern Ireland in Belfast. The Russians will likely count on Dynamo Moscow star Yuri Zhirkov to be their creative midfielder, and he will certainly look for his club teammate Aleksandr Kokorin who is expected to start ahead of Zenit’s Aleksandr Kerzhakov. The Russians, however, will be put to the test in the humid climate as they are used to playing in the cooler climate well north of the equator.
The South Koreans come into the tournament having won their last three World Cup openers, beating Poland 1-0 in 2002, Togo 2-1 in 2006 and Greece 2-1 in 2010. The Koreans are coached by Hong Myung-bo who led the 'Taegeuk Warriors' to their surprise semi-final appearance at home in 2002, their best World Cup showing ever. Swansea midfielder Ki Sung-Yueng and former Arsenal man Park Chu-Young are expected to start for the Koreans, who will look to surprise the Russians on the break.
The match should showcase two sides looking to prove that they are worthy of qualifying to the knockout round. The extremely strong Belgians are almost certain to qualify so all eyes will be on the second slot in the group, which will be fought over ferociously by these two sides. The game will be won in the midfield, but organized defense will also be imperative if either side wishes to start their tournament hopes on the right foot.
The game is set to kick off at 6:00PM EST at the Arena Patanal in Cuiaba, Mato Grosso. It can be seen on ESPN and in Spanish on Univision. If you want to live stream the match, simply go to WatchESPN here and here for a live stream in Spanish.
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