Klinsmann’s men take a 2-0 halftime lead against China, led by a multi-goal performance from Son Heung-min (Tottenham).
Jürgen Klinsmann’s South Korea national football team took a 2-0 lead into halftime of their 2026 North American Football Confederations Cup Asia Second Qualifying Group C match against China at the Shenzhen Universiade Sports Center in Guangdong, China, on Monday.
South Korea leads the all-time series against China with 21 wins, 13 draws and two losses, including a recent three-game winning streak.
China is ranked 79th by the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), 55 spots below South Korea (24th).
Klinsmann named South Korea’s “Big Three” attacking trio of Son Heung-min (Tottenham), Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), and Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton) to the starting lineup for the second time since the last match in Singapore.
Striker Cho Kyu-sung (Mitwillan) started up front, with Hwang Hee-chan, Hwang In-beom (Zvezda), and Lee Kang-in supporting him in the second line from the left.
Son Heung-min moved freely between the front line and the second line.
Park Yong-woo (Al Ain) played as a defensive midfielder, while the back line was formed by Lee Ki-je (Suwon), Kim Min-jae (Munich), Jung Seung-hyun, and Kim Tae-hwan (Ulsan) from the left.
Kim Seung-kyu (Al-Shabaab) wore the goalkeeping gloves.
South Korea took the lead in the 11th minute on a penalty kick by Son Heung-min. It was Son Heung-min’s 40th A-Match goal.
Earlier, China defender Zhu Tianze fouled Hwang Hee-chan in the penalty area, giving Korea a penalty kick.
Hwang Hee-chan drew the foul as he lunged for the ball after Cho Kyu-sung’s shot from his own pass was blocked by Zhu Tian-je and a scramble ensued between them and the goalkeeper.
Still in control of the game, South Korea had a golden opportunity to add to their lead in the 24th minute.
After Son Heung-min’s left-footed shot from the penalty spot was saved by the goalkeeper, Hwang Hee-chan, who had been lurking in the box, was able to get a second shot on goal, only to be denied again by the keeper.
Son Heung-min was also responsible for the second goal in the 45th minute.
Lee Kang-in’s corner kick from the right was headed into the net by Son Heung-min at the near post.
The closest China came to a goal in the first half was in the 42nd minute when Liu Binbin’s pass from the right was met by Tan Lung with a right-footed non-stop shot that hit the side netting. 사설토토