Korea taking on Mexico in pursuit of 2nd straight friendly win in US

In this Getty Images photo, Son Heung-min of Korea celebrates his first half goal against the United States during an International Friendly at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, Sept. 6. AFP-Yonhap

After enjoying a tidy win over the United States over the weekend, Korea will seek another victory on American soil when they face Mexico in their second friendly match there this month.

Coached by Hong Myung-bo, Korea, world No. 23, will play 13th-ranked Mexico at Geodis Park in Nashville, Tennessee, at 8 p.m. Tuesday (local time), or 10 a.m. Wednesday (Korean time).

The Taegeuk Warriors are fresh off a 2-0 defeat of the home team U.S. in New Jersey on Saturday, thanks to a goal and an assist by their captain Son Heung-min.

Head coach Hong Myung-bo praised efforts by Son and the rest of his team, and called the win a "compact match," the likes of which Korea hadn't played in a long time. Hong's continued experiment with the back-three formation, with Bayern Munich's Kim Min-jae anchoring the line, had its finest moment in that U.S. victory. After overcoming some shaky early moments, Kim served as the steady presence on defense and also helped generate opportunities at the other end with sharp passes.

Son was his vintage self while playing as the striker. He also earned his 135th cap in the U.S. match. If he takes the field against Mexico as expected, he will pull into a tie with Hong and former striker Cha Bum-kun at the top of the country's all-time list.

Son is also closing in on Cha's record of 58 goals. The first-half goal against the U.S. was Son's 52nd in his international career, which began in December 2010.

Son Heung-min of Korea chases the ball during a friendly match against the United States at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, Sept. 6. Yonhap

It was a particularly encouraging showing by Son, whose seven-year captaincy had been thrust into question after Hong said last August that he would consider changing his skipper before next year's FIFA World Cup.

True to form, Son deferred credit to his teammates afterward, saying it took a total team effort to take down the Americans.

Son played off midfielder Lee Jae-sung, the fellow 33-year-old and one of his closest friends on the team, on both of the goal-scoring plays. It was no coincidence that Korea's attack lost its edge after Lee was forced to leave the match early in the second half with what was later diagnosed as a partially torn hamstring.

With Lee unlikely to play against Mexico, Hong will have to turn to a reserve of young and dynamic playmakers in his position, including Bae Jun-ho, who replaced Lee during the U.S. match, and Lee Kang-in, who subbed in for Lee Dong-gyeong in the second half after the latter had netted the team's second goal.

Lee Dong-gyeong, who netted Korea's second goal against the U.S., said he would love another opportunity to score again.

"Whenever I come to play for the national team, I am always inspired by the great players around me," he said before a training session in Nashville on Sunday. "The vibe is awesome on the team after our win yesterday. We are all chasing the same goal and my job is to do the best I can to help the team accomplish that."

Defender Seol Young-woo said he will take the Mexico match as seriously as he will a World Cup contest.

"This will be a good opportunity for us to test ourselves against a strong opponent," Seol added.

Jens Castrop, the Korean German midfielder, made his Korea debut as a second-half sub against the U.S. and played a solid 30-plus minutes to lock down the win. Hong said afterward Castrop executed his plans well despite playing in his first match and predicted the 22-year-old will continue to help the national team going forward.

Goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo got a leg up on another veteran keeper, Kim Seung-gyu, for the No. 1 job, after making some spectacular saves to keep the Americans off the board. Jo was Korea's first-choice goalkeeper at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, but Kim had that honor at the next World Cup four years later. Jo has been unchallenged in recent months, but Kim is now back in the mix after a torn knee ligament knocked him out of the Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup in January 2024.

Korea have four wins, two draws and eight losses against Mexico but have not beaten El Tricolor since February 2006, four matches ago.