South Korea vs China: Match Preview and Prediction

By

 Aron Wright

South Korea vs China
Asia – 2018 World Cup Qualifier
Date: Thursday; 1-September-2016
Kick-off: 12:00 UK
Venue: World Cup Stadium, Seoul.

South Korea were untested during the second round of the World Cup Qualifiers and they finished top of their group with a 100% win record. However, only Lebanon and Kuwait were supposed to give them some sort of trouble in a group which also included minnows Myanmar and Laos. They were also lethal in front of goal scoring 27 times, while keeping clean sheets in each of their 8 games.

China qualified to the third round of the qualifiers as one of the best second placed team. They finished behind Qatar in their group which also included Hong Kong, Maldives and Bhutan. They won 5 matches, while were held to 0-0 draws by Hong Kong on two occasions and lost once to Qatar. China have qualified for the World Cup only once during the 2002 edition co-hosted by South Korea and Japan. This failed to reach the third round of qualifiers in the last three years.

South Korea vs China: Head-to-Head

South Korea hold a massive head-to-head record over China with 17 wins, 10 draws and 1 loss from their 28 meetings so far.

Their recent meeting was during the 2015 East Asian Cup, which finished in a 2-0 win for the Koreans.

South Korea vs China: Prediction

The South Koreans have a vastly experienced squad with most of the key players being part of the since since 2010. And they hardly disappoint when it comes to the World Cup qualifiers. They have also won 11 of their last 12 qualifying fixtures at home with clean sheets in 8.

While China have a poor record against South Korea and haven’t come across quality sides in recent years. They will be coming with a mentality to snatch a draw, but I am sure that the Koreans have other plans.

I will be also backing my correct score prediction of a 2-0 win for South Korea in Thursday’s fixture against China at the odds of 9/2 (5.00).