South Korea came from behind to beat Czech Republic 2-1 in Guadalajara in the second match of the 2026 World Cup, after Hwang In-beom and Oh Hyeon-gyu overturned Ladislav Krejci’s second-half opener.
The scoreline reflected the balance of the match. South Korea controlled possession from the start and forced Czech Republic deep inside their own half for long periods. Jurgen Klinsmann’s side moved the ball quickly through midfield and repeatedly found space around the Czech back line, but poor finishing kept the game level before the break.
Son Heung-min wasted South Korea’s best openings in the first half. The forward fired over twice from promising positions and then slipped at the crucial moment after Lee Jae-sung drilled a low cross into the box just before half-time.
Czech Republic struggled to build attacks through open play and relied heavily on dead-ball situations and long throws. Patrik Schick missed their first clear chance after Lukas Provod robbed possession high up the pitch, while Tomas Soucek later directed a corner wide from close range.
South Korea increased the tempo after the restart. Hwang In-beom forced Matej Kovar into a sharp low save before the Czech goalkeeper denied Son in a one-on-one situation.
Against the run of play, Czech Republic took the lead in the 61st minute. Vladimir Coufal launched a long throw into the box and Krejci powered home a header as South Korea failed to clear the danger.
South Korea responded quickly and deservedly. Lee Kang-in slipped a precise pass into Hwang In-beom, who killed the ball with one touch before lifting a composed finish beyond Kovar in the 68th minute.
The winning goal arrived 13 minutes later. Hwang again drove the attack, bursting down the right before whipping a dangerous cross into the six-yard box. Substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu met it first time and beat Kovar at the near post.
Soucek thought he had equalised late on, but the assistant referee ruled out his header for offside. South Korea then managed the closing minutes comfortably to secure three points.
