South Korea vs Ghana prediction: WORLD: World Cup betting tips on match 2022-11-27 13:00.
A goalless draw was not the most exciting way for South Korea to start their tenth consecutive World Cup tournament appearance, but it certainly kept their hopes of reaching the knockout round for just a third time alive. Coach Paulo Bento praised the united nature of his team's performance in their game against Uruguay, stating: “We, as coaches, value all the elements of the team."
Those remarks also perhaps served to take the focus off of South Korean superstar Son Heung-Min, who put in a subdued performance while wearing a facemask due to recent facial surgery. The Taeguk Warriors will know that qualification remains firmly in play and they can move into the top two if they can further strengthen their 76% unbeaten rate against African nations (W27, D15, L13) with a victory over Ghana, a result they might feel they need with Portugal lying in wait in their final game.
No African nation has progressed deeper than Ghana’s quarter-final appearance back in 2010, although any hopes of a repeat could come crashing down unless they can bounce back from their 3-2 defeat to Portugal in their opener. Ghana boss Otto Addo sarcastically congratulated Portugal in the aftermath, putting it down to “special gifts from the referee” in reference to a costly spot-kick decision.
The Black Stars have the tools to trouble South Korea up top, and they’ve consistently shown their scoring capabilities by netting in ten of their 13 all-time World Cup tournament matches. Another reason to expect goals is because there has never previously been a stalemate between these nations who have secured three wins apiece, although Ghana must work hard to improve upon their rather tepid 37% overall win-rate against AFC nations (W14, D6, L18).
Players to watch: South Korea’s masked man, Son, could still prove to be the hero for his country after scoring in four of his last six international appearances in a run which includes a goal against African nation Cameroon. Ghana and Ajax forward Mohammed Kudus has brought a bit of Dutch courage to the tournament after following up an early yellow card with an assist in their opener, although three of his last five scoring appearances came in defeats.
Hot stat: Just two of South Korea's last 11 internationals produced a goalless first half.
World Cup trivia: Never before has an Asian or African nation lifted the World Cup. European nations have won 12, whilst South American sides claimed the remaining nine of the 21 tournaments held before Qatar 2022.