Brazil vs. South Korea | Round 16 | How do both squads compare ahead of World Cup clash?
Aiming to secure safe passage into the quarter-final of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Brazil and South Korea go head-to-head at Stadium 974 starting now.
Tite's men suffered a first defeat of the ongoing World Cup in their final group match and will need to put on an improved display in this one.
Paulo Bento's men, meanwhile, upset the odds against Portugal last time out as they claimed a 2-1 victory to just about book their place in the knockout phase of football's biggest competition.
Brazil
Most valuable player:
Vinicius Junior (£103.7m)
Overall squad value:
£985.7m
Most capped player:
Dani Alves (125)
Leading goalscorer:
Neymar (75)
Total caps:
998
Total goals:
164
Oldest player:
Dani Alves (39)
Youngest player:
Gabriel Martinelli (21)
Average age:
27.9
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Goalkeepers: Alisson Becker (Liverpool), Ederson (Manchester City), Weverton (Palmeiras)
Defenders: Dani Alves (UNAM Pumas), Danilo (Juventus), Alex Sandro (Juventus), Alex Telles (Sevilla), Bremer (Juventus), Eder Militao (Real Madrid), Marquinhos (Paris Saint-Germain), Thiago Silva (Chelsea)
Midfielders: Casemiro (Manchester United), Everton Ribeiro (Flamengo), Bruno Guimaraes (Newcastle United), Fabinho (Liverpool), Fred (Manchester United), Lucas Paqueta (West Ham United)
Forwards: Antony (Manchester United), Gabriel Jesus (Arsenal), Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal), Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain), Pedro (Flamengo), Raphinha (Barcelona), Rodrygo (Real Madrid), Richarlison (Tottenham Hotspur), Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid)
South Korea
Most valuable player:
Heung-min Son (£60.4m)
Overall squad value:
£142.4m
Most capped player:
Heung-min Son (107)
Leading goalscorer:
Heung-min Son (35)
Total caps:
966
Total goals:
117
Oldest player:
Kim Tae-hwan (33)
Youngest player:
Lee Kang-in (21)
Average age:
27.8
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Goalkeepers: Kim Seung-gyu (Al-Shabab), Jo Hyeon-woo (Ulsan Hyundai), Song Bum-keun (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors)
Defenders: Kim Jin-su (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors), Hong Chul (Daegu FC), Kim Moon-hwan (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors), Kim Young-gwon (Ulsan Hyundai), Kwon Kyung-won (Gamba Osaka), Kim Tae-hwan (Ulsan Hyundai), Cho Yu-min (Daejon Hana Citizen), Kim Min-jae (Napoli), Yoon Jong-gyu (FC Seoul)
Midfielders: Jung Woo-young (Al-Sadd), Lee Jae-sung (Mainz), Hwang In-beom (Olympiacos), Na Sang-ho (FC Seoul), Paik Seung-ho (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors), Kwon Chang-hoon (Gimcheon Sangmu), Paik Seung-ho (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors), Son Jun-ho (Shandong Taishan), Jeong Woo-yeong (Freiburg), Lee Kang-in (Mallorca), Yang Hyun-jun (Gangwon FC)
Forwards: Son Heung-min (Tottenham), Hwang Ui-jo (Olympiacos), Cho Gue-sung (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors), Hwang Hee-chan (Wolves)
Match Preview
Chance after chance after chance came the way of a much-changed Brazil side in their final Group G clash with Cameroon, but a combination of stellar goalkeeping from Devis Epassy and wastefulness from Tite's fringe players could have proven more costly than it did on the day.
The Indomitable Lions held out for 92 minutes before securing a famous win through Vincent Aboubakar, who was sent off for a shirt-stripping celebration having already been booked, but that 1-0 result made no difference as Cameroon packed their bags and said goodbye, while Brazil just about held off Switzerland to top the group.
A nine-game winning run has now come to a grinding halt for Brazil, who are still regarded as one of the favourites to go all the way in a World Cup of giant killings, but even their slender wins over Serbia and Switzerland did not come with the attacking ruthlessness that has been expected of them.
Slow starts have been a theme for the five-time champions at the Qatar tournament so far, and they have now gone five World Cup matches without scoring in the first half, which will need to be rectified should they wish to hang on to their favourites tag a little while longer.
Nevertheless, the Selecao have now qualified for the knockout stage of the World Cup for the ninth time in a row, and it has been 32 years since Brazil were last knocked out in the round of 16, suffering a 1-0 defeat to Argentina courtesy of Claudio Caniggia's strike.
A historic all-Asian quarter-final at the World Cup is now a real possibility following the events of Friday afternoon, where South Korea recovered from Ricardo Horta's early goal for Portugal to stun the 2016 European champions and advance to the knockout stages.
After Portugal failed to clear their lines from a corner, Kim Young-gwon took advantage to level the scores before the half-time break, and with 91 minutes on the clock, Wolverhampton Wanderers' Hwang Hee-chan timed his run to perfection to slot home the third and final goal in that 2-1 win.
Celebrations quickly died down at the final whistle as players gathered to watch the outcome of Uruguay's clash with Ghana, and a 2-0 win for the South American nation was not enough, as those in red and white erupted when their side's place in the last 16 was sealed by virtue of goals scored.
Neither Uruguay nor Portugal - albeit a heavily altered one - possessed the formula for success against South Korea, who could potentially meet near neighbours Japan in the quarter-finals, although their fellow Asians face their own daunting last-16 clash with Croatia on Monday as well.
The Tigers of Asia have only ever managed to progress beyond the last 16 at the World Cup once, reaching the semi-finals of the 2002 edition amid a wave of officiating controversy, and they locked horns with Brazil as recently as June, but that friendly match ended in a comprehensive 5-1 defeat.
Brazil World Cup form:
W W L
Brazil form (all competitions):
W W W W W L
South Korea World Cup form:
D L W
South Korea form (all competitions):
D W W D L W
The Brazil treatment room has been well-occupied during their short time in Qatar, but the Selecao doctor Rodrigo Lasmar has provided a positive update on Neymar, who is in with a chance of recovering from an ankle injury in time to start against South Korea.
However, Tite has lost both Gabriel Jesus and Alex Telles for the remainder of the tournament after both men sustained knee problems in the clash with Cameroon, although the former was always expected to drop out for Richarlison here.
Telles's withdrawal and Alex Sandro's hip problem has left Tite short at left-back, but Danilo is making good progress in his recovery from an ankle sprain of his own and could deputise on that side, with Eder Militao occupying the right flank.
Meanwhile, South Korea's Hwang had been dealing with hamstring pain throughout the tournament before coming up with the goal that would send his nation through, so Lee Jae-sung may now be fearing for his place in the XI.
Kim Min-jae was rested for the clash with Portugal due to calf discomfort and is still a major doubt, while Lee Kang-in and Kim Young-gwon also came off with physical problems against Portugal and will need a once-over.
Neither man is thought to be nursing anything that would affect their participation for Monday, where talisman Son Heung-min will hope to improve on a paltry tally of one goal from his last 13 shots at the World Cup.
Brazil possible starting lineup:
Alisson; Militao, Marquinhos, Silva, Danilo; Paqueta, Casemiro, Neymar; Raphinha, Richarlison, Vinicius Jr
South Korea possible starting lineup:
Seung-gyu; Moon-hwan, Kyung-won, Young-gwon, Jin-su; In-beom, Woo-young; Hee-chan, Kang-in, Heung-min; Gue-sung
We say: Brazil 2-1 South Korea
Possessing goal threats in all areas of the field, South Korea can feel optimistic of breaking down a ravaged Brazil backline, with Son and Hwang sure to be licking their lips after taking a look at the Selecao's full-back injury concerns.
Brazil's loss to Cameroon may have been a slight shock to the system, but Tite will now welcome back a plethora of first-team stars and could potentially have Neymar at his disposal from the off, so we still expect the Selecao's extensive attacking options to fire the five-time champions into the last eight and end the South Korean dream.