The South Korean national soccer team’s two October A matches have been confirmed. They are Tunisia, ranked 31st by the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), and Vietnam, ranked 95th.
According to the Korea Football Association on Wednesday, the national team, coached by Jürgen Klinsmann, will face Tunisia (Oct. 13, 8 p.m., Seoul World Cup Stadium) and Vietnam (Oct. 17, 8 p.m., Suwon World Cup Stadium) during the October A matches.
Tunisia, the first of the two October A matches, is an African powerhouse ranked 31st in the FIFA rankings. South Korea, ranked 28th in the FIFA rankings, has met Tunisia twice before, drawing 0-0 in the first match in March 2002 and losing 0-1 in the second match in May 2014 to trail the all-time series 1-1.
Tunisia failed to advance to the round of 16 at last year’s World Cup in Qatar with one win and one draw in Group D, but they did produce an upset with a 1-0 victory over France.
Vietnam, the second opponent in the October A match, is ranked 95th by FIFA, the highest ranking for a Southeast Asian nation.
South Korea leads the all-time series against Vietnam with 17 wins, five draws and two losses. The last time the two teams met was in September 2004 in the second Asian qualifying round for the 2006 World Cup in Germany, marking the first time they have met in 19 years.
Klinsmann wanted an opponent that would play a tight defense in the October A match, and coincidentally, Vietnam were drawn in the same group as Thailand in the second round of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup in North and Central America. 안전놀이터