Al Rayyan. For some, an open 0-0 means a miscalculation, and for others it provides a useful point.
For South Korea, this match was part of a national process.
Sometimes 0-0 can be enough for some kind of victory with a higher goal.
Diego Godin nodded at the post, Fede Valverde bumped the other and near the end it was a breathless South Korean side fighting for points.
At the same time, their fans stood by the corner flag and sang in unison to Beethoven’s ninth notes. In Sweden it might be best known as song of the month these days – “January begins the year” – but internationally it’s still the “Death of Freud” that applies.
For joy – even glädjen.
For happiness, friendship, fraternity and brotherhood. For football with purpose and meaning.
We all have our objections to this particular World Cup, but if you’re a South Korean who believes in destiny and some kind of high communication, you’ll probably start calling in most World Cups with deathly sadness. in the calendar.
In April 2014, South Korea suffered one of the most terrible tragedies in the country’s history. In real time, the nation was able to follow television images that showed the sinking of a passenger ferry off Jeju Island.
306 people drowned, the vast majority of schoolchildren between the ages of 16 and 17.
A few weeks later, the South Korean national team went to Brazil for the World Cup, perhaps to make some kind of positive effort to change the mood back home.
They went straight, not winning a game.
Can they even watch football
Less than a month ago, it happened in Itaewon, when at least 151 people were crushed and suffocated to death during Halloween celebrations. The vast majority were young, of the same generation as the ferry disaster victims – and of the same generation as most of the players in this World Cup squad.
It was not easy for the South Korean nation to find the right approach to this tournament.
For the rest of us, the World Cup load mainly revolved around whether or not Heung-min Son would be there, but for many Koreans it was about whether it was possible to watch football and find any enjoyment in it.
The traditional big screen shows were initially cancelled, as the Seoul city government believed they would go against prevailing public sentiment. But over time, the mood has changed somewhat, and more and more people are looking at football as something that can help get rid of severe grief.
Just a week ago, the Red Devils – the national team’s supporters club – tried again, and this time they were given permission to gather at Gwanghwamun Square. The permit was conditional. It was given only on the condition that the football fans themselves take responsibility for the matter.
The fans promised, the people promised — and when the World Cup began, South Korean youth stood together again in their tens of thousands for the first time since darkness fell on the nation.
To a greater extent than usual, of course, the South Korean team played with them. They played for everyone here, everyone in the house and everyone who was no longer with them.
The opening was furious and colossal. A gritty and collected Korean team stepped up, pressed, and made Uruguay’s scripted team crack right.
In the middle of the half, Hwang Ui-Jo also had a great chance, but the ball kept rising when it should only have been directed to the far end.
Honestly, the possibility of winning was like smoke out there. As the match went on, it turned into a battle we couldn’t lose.
If you face Uruguay, this fight will not be easy, after all.
Neither Luis Suarez nor Darwin Nunez have that silky ball handling – the engineeredly precise first touch you develop on the golf greens of great Western European academies to football fields – but they are tough bastards to play against.
After the final whistle, the South Korean players approached their fans and thanked them with a joint bow. It belongs in the tradition, but it felt even more powerful today.
I didn’t think South Korea would manage to score in this match, against a weather damaged team fighting Uruguay. I was afraid they would lose again, like in 2014.
I’m glad they didn’t.
