Korea draws 2-2 with Honduras in Olympic prep

Korea’s Olympic football team forward Park In-hyeok, center, scores an equalizer late in the second half during a match against Honduras in the team’s second game of a four-nation Under-23 football tournament at Goyang Stadium in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, Saturday. / Yonhap

By John Duerden

Those fans who made it to Goyang Stadium on Saturday afternoon enjoyed an entertaining 90 minutes as South Korea’s Under-23 team fought back to tie Honduras 2-2.

It is uncertain whether coach Shin Tae-yong thought it was quite as exciting. The performance was mixed, but because it was a preparation game with an experimental starting 11, that is not automatically a bad thing.

For the young Taegeuk Warriors, this was the second of three vital warm-up games in the space of less than a week. Korea defeated Nigeria in Suwon, Thursday, and will play Denmark today. They are all part of Shin’s attempts to guide the team to success at the 2016 Rio Olympics in August.

At the 2012 London Olympics, Hong Myung-bo took the team to bronze, earning glory and a military exemption for the roster. But being drawn in a group with Fiji, Germany and Mexico makes for a challenging first round this time.

At half-time on Saturday, bronze ― or better ― was looking distant as Honduras had taken the lead. Midway through the first half, Antony Lozano opened the scoring from Alberth Elis’ cross.

After 35 minutes, Kim Hyun scored a penalty after Marcelo Pereira had handled the ball in the area. But there was still time before the break for the Central Americans to restore the lead. It was Lozano again, shooting home from close range after a shot had hit the crossbar.

Korea scored late in the game to defeat Nigeria and scored even later in the game this time to earn a tie. Park In-hyeok shot home after good work from Hwang Hee-chan with just seconds remaining on the clock.

With just one player from the Nigeria game starting, it was always a chance for some players to stake a final claim for a place in the starting 11 or the roster. Shin said after the game he knows about 80 percent of his final roster, so there is still time to make a late bid for entry.

Choi Kyoung-rok had a good showing on the right side but there were not many players who really caught the eye. Given the number of changes, though, it was always going to be difficult for the team to achieve any level of fluency, especially as there were many substitutions in the second half. In the end, it was testament to the host’s spirit that it twice fought back from a goal down.

It will be a different team that takes on Denmark on Monday.

Injured attacking midfielder Kwon Chang-hoon was missed and when the team travels to Brazil, there will also be three “wildcard” players, those over the age of 23, on the roster. Coach Shin wants to take Son Heung-min of Tottenham Hotspur in England, FC Augsburg defender Hong Jeong-ho and Jang Hyun-soo of Guangzhou R&F.

Because the Olympics is not a FIFA-recognized tournament, clubs are under no obligation to release players. It remains to be seen what the clubs will do. Shin and his staff are optimistic they will get the players they want but will have to wait and see.

For now, though, the focus is Denmark.