brazil secured a 2-1 win against korea dpr but they were made to work extremely hard to secure maximum points after the asian outsiders showed impressive resilience. the koreans kept the brazilians scoreless until ten minutes into the second half when maicon scored a stunning goal from an outrageous angle. elano doubled the lead midway through the second half and the contest appeared all over, but a late goal from ji yun nam ensured brazil endured some nervy moments in the final minutes.
on paper the contrast between the pair could not have been starker in what was the first match between the two nations. five-time world champions brazil, are currently placed at the top of fifa coca-cola world ranking while korea sit at 105. the koreans coming into the contest on a run of eight outings without a victory, while brazil conversely, had won their previous four matches.
the first half was largely all brazil though they had very few clear sights of goal and korea dpr weren’t without their own lively moments going forward. defender cha jong hyok fired a shot wide while japan-based striker, jong tae-se, who had tears streaming down his face as the national anthem played, looked particularly keen to offer drive in his role at the point of the attack.
kaka made a dangerous run into the penalty in the opening minutes in what seemed likely to set the tone for the match, but a korean side which conceded just seven goals in their 14 qualifying matches are known for their swarming defence in their own third.
the nearest brazil came to scoring in the first half was a michel bastos drive from distance which clipped the roof of the net but in truth the shot never looked like dipping under the crossbar.
korea dpr went into the half-time interval looking relatively comfortable despite conceding 63 per cent of possession. no doubt the koreans allowed themselves at least brief thoughts of repeating the heroics of their nation’s famous defeat of italy at england 1966.
brazil opened the second half brightly and a bastos’ free-kick from a central position early in the second period looked dangerous but the blistering effort curved wide of the mark. robinho did likewise with a snapshot moments later with brazil often forced to resort to shooting from distance.
ten minutes after the interval came the game-breaker and it took a moment of brilliance from maicon to break the deadlock. there appeared little danger as he chased down a slightly overhit pass into the penalty area and with the ball just about to roll over the byline, maicon blazed a shot between ri myong guk and the near post, in a goal reminiscent of fellow right full-back josimar at mexico 1986.
the goal opened up the match as the koreans started to show more endeavour with numbers going forward. luis fabiano looked set to take advantage midway through the second half after being set up by robinho but could not find the target.
the contest appeared over as elano comfortably finished past an exposed ri myong guk with 18 minutes remaining, with robinho providing an exquisite pass that checkmated the entire korean defensive quartet.
it was a selecao who looked more likely to score but with two minutes remaining ji yun nam burst into the penalty area and drove past julio cesar with a memorable strike for korea dpr's first goal at a fifa world cup™ for 44 years.
