September 10, 2024
Politics are never too far away when the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea aka North Korea, and football are concerned. The secretive state emerged from its last self-imposed isolation in 2019 to participate in 2023 in the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. After some inevitable controversy they have eventually progressed to the Third Qualifying Round.
North Korea Background
North Korea are currently 110th in the FIFA rankings, although they presumably would be significantly higher had they not missed 5 years of matches due to their isolation, initially due to the Covid pandemic.
They have twice qualified for the World Cup Finals. After drawing 1-1 with Chile in 1966 in England, they famously beat Italy 1-0, and then sensationally took a 3-0 first half lead against Portugal in the quarter final before Eusebio and co rallied to register a 5-3 win to end the fairytale.
North Korea also qualified for the 2010 finals in South Africa, eliminating Saudi Arabia, Iran and UAE in their final qualifying round. They put in a good performance in their first match, only going down 1-2 to Brazil, but they were unable to sustain that level and lost their other two matches, 0-7 to Portugal and 0-3 to Ivory Coast.
One notable feature of their 2010 appearance was the selection of two players born and raised in Japan with North Korean heritage. Kawasaki Frontale striker Jong Tae-se played a prominent part in securing their qualification, and experienced midfielder An Yong-Hak had played for Albirex Niigata, Nagoya Grampus Eight and South Korean sides I-Busan and Suwon Bluewings.
North Korea have a respectable record in the Asian Cup Finals, with a best placed finish of fourth in 1980. They also qualified for the finals in 1992, 2011, 2015 and 2019 but without getting out of their group. Their place in the 2027 finals has also been secured as some World Cup qualifiers also served as qualification games for the finals to be held in Saudi Arabia.
North Korea Domestic League
Apparently twelve sides play in the highest level of the North Korean league, although due to the secretive nature of the country, results are rarely known outside the country, and sometimes even the final places and the winners !
April 25, the team of the Army, have apparently won the most titles and have a big rivalry with Amnokgang, the team of the Security Services. Other teams are sponsored by the Air Force, the State Railway, the Worker-Peasants Red Guard, the Workers Party, and other parts of the state apparatus.
North Korea Qualifying Campaign
After having last played an international in July 2019, when they beat Tajikistan, North Korea emerged from the wilderness in November 2023 to play World Cup Second Round Qualifiers. Their first match was an away fixture against Syria, which due to the political situation in the Middle East was played in Saudi Arabia, which they lost 0-1 due to a naively conceded first half penalty. However, they bounced back to trounce Mynamar 6-1 in Rangoon, with ex-Luzern striker Jong Il-gwan grabbing a hat-trick and ex-Cagliari and Perugia forward Han Kwang-song, who was once dubbed the North Korean Ronaldo, also on the scoresheet. Both players had disappeared from the face of the earth following the Covid pandemic but were now back in North Korean and had re-emerged with the rest of the national side.
In 2021, Ri il-song was included in The Guardian’s 60 best young players in the world but a planned move to Spain never happened due to Covid.
A competitive 0-1 loss in Tokyo against an excellent Japan side followed, but the controversy arrived for the return fixture when the North Korean government refused entry to the Japanese side into the country on the basis of an “illness outbreak” in Japan. Consequently, a 0-3 victory was awarded to Japan, and North Korea were ordered to play their future home games outside of the country.
Consequently, their two remaining home games were played in Vientiane, the capital of Laos, which is also where today’s match was being played. A crowd of 100 people turned up to see Jong Il-gwan score a predatory injury time goal to defeat Syria 1-0, then a 4-1 victory over Myanmar in front of 141 spectators, with Ri Jo-guk scoring a hat-trick, was sufficient to take second place in the group behind Japan.
In the Third Qualification Round, North Korea were drawn with Uzbekistan, Qatar and UAE, and they lost their first match of this campaign, 0-1 in Tashkent, with Uzbek playmaker Jaloliddin Masharipov scoring the only goal of the goal in the first half. Kang Kuk-chol missed a penalty for North Korea.
Qatar Qualifying Campaign
Qatar were hosts for the 2022 World Cup but set some kind of unwanted record for a host by losing all three of their group matches, going down 0-2 to Ecuador, 1-3 to Senegal and 0-2 to the Netherlands.
They did a lot better in the 2023 AFC Asian Cup which they hosted in 2024, going on to win the competition for the second time.
These diaries reported on their 1-0 victory over Tajikistan in January and was I wasn’t impressed by Qatar, who seemed to be overly reliant on Mo Salah like striker Akram Afif. Their cynical attempts to con the referee eg pretending to be hit in the face when contact was elsewhere, faking injuries, rolling around on the floor to try and win free-kicks and demanding the referee issue yellow cards, left a nasty taste in my mouth. They also seemed to benefit from a number of favourable decisions from the officials.
https://fatbearssportingdiaries.blogspot.com/2024/01/qatar-1-0-tajikistan-att-57460-2023-afc.html
Qatar topped their group in the Second Qualification round with wins over India ( 2-1 and 3-0 ), Kuwait ( 3-0 & 2-1 ) and Afghanistan ( 8-1 ). The only stain on their record was a surprise 0-0 draw with lowly Afghanistan ( 151st in the FIFA rankings ) in a match played in Saudi Arabia.
They were unexpectedly beaten 1-3 at home to the UAE in their first match in the Third Round despite leading 1-0 at half-time, conceding three goals in the final 22 minutes. Therefore, they desperately needed a win today to keep their campaign on track.
Matchday Information
The weather in Vientiane at the 19.00 local time kick-off ( 13.00 UK ) was dry and 27 degrees. The Lao national Stadium has a capacity of 25,000, a grass pitch, and a running track around the pitch.
The match was shown live on AFC Asian Cup YouTube channel and was also streamed on Bet365.com, who made Qatar 7/10 favourites, with North Korea at 19/4 and the draw at 5/2.
Qatar made two changes from the side that lost at home to UAE with Mohammad Waad and Ismaeel Mohammed dropping out to be replaced by Adullah Al Yazidi and Homam Al Amin. Eight of the starting line-up had featured in the Asian Cup match against Tajikistan.
North Korea made one change from their starting line-up against Uzbekistan, with Ri Jo-guk coming in for Kim Kuk-jin.
A small core of North Korea supporters were in the main stand, presumably loyal and trusted party members allowed to travel outside of the country, and there were also a small number of Qatari fans.
Qatar were playing in a tasteful change kit of all white with purple trimmings, whilst North Korea were in all red, but unlike Qatar they didn’t have the players’ names on the back of the shirt. The referee was from Malaysia.
Match Report
North Korea began the match with a fast tempo, not letting the Qataris settle on the ball with an energetic press and quick passing when they had possession. However, the first half chance of the game went the way of the visitors in the 5th minute when a lovely cross-field ball reached Al Amin, who showed good control and then laid inside to Al Hassan, but the shot from just inside the area was mis-hit and headed towards the corner flag.
The “home” side responded a minute later when Ri il-song ran at the retreating Qatar backline and sent a 25 yard shot a yard or so wide.
In the 8th minute, a free kick was played short for Kim Pom-hyok to send a vicious, swerving 30-yard effort towards goal, but Barsham made an excellent finger tip save to tip the ball over the bar. A minute later Al Hassan was forced to concede a corner under pressure in the corner, but the set-piece delivery was grossly overhit and sailed off for a throw in.
Qatar then enjoyed a brief good spell, firstly with Al Yazidi shooting over from 25 yards and then the same player played a long ball from close to half-way on the right, which was chested down by Almoez Ali, who was then able to turn and shoot from 12 yards, but his effort hit the outside of the post. He looked marginally offside, but a goal kick was given. An almost identical move followed two minutes later, but this time Ali’s control was not so good, and North Korea were able to clear.
North Korea were able to play the ball to Ri il-song on the left wing, and the winger cut inside past Pedro and unleashed a thunderbolt into the top corner from 20 yards. Keeper Barsham had little chance of keeping that out, so it was 1-0 with 18 minutes played.
The cynical side of Qatar’s play almost immediately emerged as Gabar let out a loud scream when tackled and rolled around on the floor, but when the referee waved play on, he was quickly up on his feet running after the ball !
Salman was shown the first yellow card of the match in the 23rd minute after clattering into the back of Han but the game took an important turn a minute later. Jang’s unfortunate slip allowed Ali to run clear on the right, and he squared the ball to Afif for a tap-in. However, Jang had regained his ground but only to pull the arm of Afif to send the Qatar star player to the floor. The referee awarded a penalty and then reversed his decision as the linesman’s flag was raised for offside against Ali. VAR checked and although it looked obvious that Ali was onside, it took three minutes for the penalty to be given, and then Jang was shown a red card.
The game descended into a farce as Jang declined to leave the field, and he and some team mates kept making gestures that VAR should be reviewed, even though VAR had already made the decision !
Eventually he departed, and 8 minutes after the foul, Afif levelled the scores with a good penalty into the keeper’s bottom right hand corner, past the despairing dive. 1-1 after 32 minutes.
North Korea immediately brought on defender Jong Kum-song to replace the unfortunate Ri Jo-guk and Kim Pom-hyok quickly saw yellow for a late tackle on Al Yazidi. Qatar won a corner from which North Korea keeper Kang crashed to the floor as the players were waiting for the ball to played in the area. It wasn’t clear from the TV replay whether Al Hassan had stood on the keeper’s ankle, or whether it was a devious attempt to level the numbers by getting a Qatar player sent-off. The referee probably played safe and showed a yellow card to Al Hassan.
Qatar then interestingly made two substitutions, with 8 minutes of the first half still to be played. The pattern of the match had now totally changed, and it was all Qatar. Kang impressively claimed a dangerous cross from the right wing, then Afif played a gorgeous defence splitting pass to allow Ali to get to the by-line, but Jong made a superb sliding block at the near post to concede a corner.
North Korea did put together a flowing one touch move, but an unnecessary flick lost possession and Qatar counterattacked. Ali received the ball from Moustafa, ran towards the goal and then fired into the opposite top corner for a stunning strike. 1-2 after 44 minutes.
After the early shenanigans, 10 added minutes were to be played. Midfielder Kang committed a bad foul on Fathi and only a profuse apology to the injured player saved the North Korean from a yellow card.
Ri made a superb run down the left wing, but his cross was a little too high for Han, the only teammate up in support. It was then Fathi’s turn to squeal after being tackled but again the referee ignored it and play continued.
At the half-time break it looked like Qatar were now in total control after the red card, and it seemed to be a case of just how many they would win by.
The players were in for a shock as they emerged from the comfort of their dressing rooms to see it was now heavily raining.
Qatar had the first chance of the second half when Mohammad’s cross when headed over by Al Rawi, a half-time substitute. For North Korea, Choe shot over from 25 yards.
With the rain getting heavier, North Korea were getting back into the game. Ri had a shot well saved by Barsham, and when the rebound fell to Kim Kuk-jin, the keeper did well to push the ball off the North Korean’s foot.
The rain was now a monsoon, and the visibility had noticeably worsened. North Korea won a free-kick 30 yards out and Kang stepped up to send the ball into the top corner with a fabulous strike, especially in these conditions, to unexpectedly level the scores. 2-2 with 51 minutes on the clock.
Mohammad shot into the side netting from a good position but there were now numerous puddles on the pitch, with passes being held up in the water. It now resembled a marsh and I was hoping all the players could swim !
After 57 minutes the referee decided that the conditions were now unplayable and took the players off the field. Rain stops play is something more accustomed to cricket, but it was undoubtedly the right decision.
The rain eased off, and with the ground staff sweeping off the worst of the puddles, the match resumed after a delay of around 15 minutes. The pitch was now a leveller, nullifying Qatar’s attempts to play passing football, whereas North Korea had quickly adapted and were defending in numbers and sending long balls for their pacey forwards to run onto.
Al Amin did well to get to the by-line and passed to Al Rawi who received a tug on his shirt to go falling to the floor. However, the ball had hit his arm first, so the free kick was awarded to North Korea.
In the 61st minute, Afif chested the ball back to Fathi but the 20-yard shot deflected of Jong for a corner. The header from Lucas was weak and the ball dribbled through to keeper Kang.
The North Korean fans had now found their voice as their side were matching Qatar despite the one-man disadvantage. A corner bounced around in the Qatar area but when Kim Pom-hyok tried to go past his opponent his touch was too heavy, and the ball went out of play.
Chung-song was looking increasingly dangerous on the break for North Korea, and in the 64th minute he made a strong run down the right, got past Waad and played the ball across the face of the goal to give Ri a tap in. However, Pedro had managed to get back to stick out a foot, and the ball went inches wide of the near post. It was so near to being an own goal.
Although Kim Kuk-bom needed to produce a decent header to clear a dangerous cross from Moustafa, North Korea were soon back on the attack and Chung-song was on a 1 on 1 with Barsham. Rather than play the square ball to the unmarked Ri, he opted to go for glory but his attempt hit the legs of Barsham as he spread himself. Chung-song’s blushes were spared when the linesman flagged for offside……..
Kang claimed a corner and seeing that Barsham had wandered up to the half-way line, he optimistically took a drop-kick towards the vacant goal. Barsham though, was able to scramble back to his area, and in the end made a comfortable save.
Chung-song then made another strong run towards the Qatar area and slid a pass to KJ Kim, who hit the deck after a challenge from Pedro. As the TV pundits might say, “there was contact”, and “I’ve seen them given”, but the referee was unimpressed, and VAR didn’t intervene. A penalty would have been very soft.
With 14 minutes remaining, Afif played a free kick into the North Korean penalty area, but Edmilson’s flicked header was poor. The ball stayed in play and was reworked to Edmilson on the edge of the area, but the ex-Sint Truiden and Standard Liege winger’s shot was weak and wide.
Kang continued to claim all the crosses lifted into the North Korean area as the rain returned although nowhere near as heavy as before. Qatar were enjoying the majority of the possession but were creating very little against a stubborn defence.
With three minutes of the 90 remaining, Jong made another good block to deny Ali sending a low cross to the 6 yard line, and from the corner, Lucas saw his volley well saved by the diving Kang, with Ali unable to follow-up.
Eight extra minutes were shown to be played, and Chung-song went on another run, and fed substitute Choe, but the angle on the left was tight, and the shot went into the side-netting.
Afif then tried his luck from 25 yards, but the effort was straight at the keeper, who did well to hold onto the ball in these conditions.
North Korea were temporarily down to nine players when Jong was taken off on a stretcher and no substitute replaced him, but Edmilson failed to take advantage by going on a mazy dribble and shooting well wide rather than looking up for a better placed teammate.
Jong returned to the fray, but two other North Koreans were then down injured but the referee allowed play to carry on, but Afif shot wide from 20 yards. In the 10th minute of added time, a scramble ensued in the North Korean 6-yard box but Ali was crowded out and the ball went off for a goal-kick
The referee blew his whistle to bring to an end to a dramatic match, with the draw helping neither team in their qualification bids. However, having played around 75 minutes with a man less, North Korea will probably be the more satisfied, taking a point against a side 34th in the FIFA rankings.
Highlights : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfZ_oWnT-yU
North Korea : J.H Kang – O.C Choe, Jang, Y.J Kim, P. Kim – Chung-song, K.B Kim, K. Kang, I. Ri – Han ( KJ Kim, JS Choe ), J. Ri ( Jong )
Qatar : Barsham – Pedro, Salman ( Mohammad ), Lucas – Al Yazidi ( Moustafa ), Gabar ( Edmilson ), Fathi, Al Hassan ( Al Rawi ), Al Amin ( Waad ) – Afif, Ali
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