Fifa World Cup: South Korean players thought Germany win was enough to go through

The Asian side needed to beat Germany by more than two goals and hope Mexico beat Sweden but their hopes ended when the Scandinavians raced into a 3-0 lead

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South Korea’s players thought they had done enough to seal their passage to the knockout stag of the World Cup after their historic win over Germany. Photo: AFP

Published: 3:02am, 28 Jun 2018Updated: 12:14pm, 28 Jun 2018

South Korea’s players were unaware they had been eliminated from the World Cup when the final whistle went after their remarkable 2-0 win over Germany which also sent the champions crashing out of the tournament, goalkeeper Cho Hyun-woo said.

The Asian side needed to beat Germany by more than two goals to stand a chance of qualifying from group F as runners up and hope Mexico beat Sweden but their already slim hopes ended when the Scandinavians raced into a 3-0 lead in the second half.

The stoppage time goals from Kim Young-gwon and Son Heung-min which gave Korea their first win in this World Cup after two defeats sparked jubilant scenes among Korea’s players and Cho said he and his teammates thought they were going through until they learned of the result from Yekaterinburg.

“We did not know (the Sweden score), it was only after the game was over that we knew,” Cho told a news conference.

“All the Korean players and the head coach here, we were playing for the Korean people. It was only after the match was over that we knew the score, that was why a lot of us cried.”

Korea coach Shin Tae-yong said he had mixed feelings after the win over Germany as it was not enough to take them through.

A South Korea fan reacts during the World Cup group F match against Germany. Photo: Reuters