Much to ponder for Korea after disappointing Women's World Cup
South Korea's women's national football team manager Colin Bell speaks to reporters at Incheon International Airport, Saturday. Yonhap
By John Duerden
South Korea returned home from Australia after a disappointing Women's World Cup last week with much to think about on the long flight back. Just one point from three games, and one goal scored, was not the result that anyone was looking for. Nobody was expecting a bottom-place finish in Group H.
It started with a 2-0 loss to Colombia, then a 1-0 defeat to Morocco and a spirited, but all-to-late, 1-1 draw with Germany in the final game. That the performance and result ended with the Europeans, a two-time champion, also heading home, however, this was not much of a consolation for the Koreans.
A bad start meant that Korea was always struggling. The opening game against Colombia was seen as all-important given that Germany was expected to finish at the top and Morocco, making a first appearance, was tipped to finish at the bottom. Of course, soccer does not always work out that way but beating the South Americans, or at least not losing, was vital. The performance was not bad. But after conceding two first-half goals, it was always going to be tough and it was a defeat that really put the pressure on head coach Colin Bell and his players.
It meant that nothing less than victory against Morocco was needed. The North Africans were making a first appearance and ranked 72nd in the world, 55 places below the Koreans. There are no easy games at the World Cup but this had to be three points. After six minutes, Morocco scored and despite all the possession and attempts on goal from the team from East Asia, it ended 1-0 and the campaign was all but over.
The performance and result against Germany was admirable but it was too little, too late. The Taeguk Nangja have never been a genuine force in the game but had appeared at the last two World Cups and reached the knockout stage in 2015. Also, the team should have arrived down under as continental champion but threw away a 2-0 lead in the final of the 2022 Asian Cup final and ended up losing 3-2 to China.
A lack of invention, creation and a cutting edge cost the team and the usual inquest will soon likely begin. There is no doubt that more investment in the female game, at both grassroots and league level, is needed. But then, there are teams that went through the first round such as Jamaica, Morocco and South Africa that don't exactly have the strongest or richest leagues at home.
The debate will go on but whatever happens, a rebuild is necessary. Stars such as Ji So-yun and Park Eun-son are the wrong side of 30 and probably won't be around in 2027 and neither will Cho So-hyun who scored against Germany and hopes that the next generation will take heart from the 1-1 draw against the team ranked second in the world and take lessons from the loss to the team ranked 72.
"I think this match instilled confidence in players who will play at future World Cups and got them thinking, 'If these girls can do it, we can do it, too,'" Cho said. "I hope teenage players who watched this match learned about the trend of international football and where we should be headed."
"Looking at the future, we have to, as far as I'm concerned, build a new team," Bell said. "There were a lot of players in the mid-30s... they also showed again and proved to everybody that they can still do it. But we need now to refocus. We need to have a look at the infrastructure. We need to look at the system in Korea…"
"For me now, it could be an exciting time for South Korea and for the KFA, if we make the right decisions," Bell added. Those decisions sometimes involve a change of coach after a disappointing tournament. That remains to be seen but whatever happens, there will be new faces going forward.