As it was in 2018, Group H has turned into the party group. Group vibes, if you will. Quite an open and fun group with each country representing a different continent. The favourites to proceed may well be Portugal and Uruguay but stranger things have happened. Ghana always have a tendency to be fun and will want to seek revenge on Uruguay and particularly Luis Suárez after his handball denied Ghana an equaliser in 2010. Of course, they later got that leveller but managed to fluff their lines on penalties. South Korea will also want to stamp their mark on this World Cup, 20 years after reaching the semi-finals in their home tournament. Back in 2002, South Korea drew Portugal in the group stage and beat them 1-0, sending them packing early.
We will focus on South Korea. The 2022 tournament will mark their eleventh entry, having hosted it once. They have also qualified for the last ten tournaments, making it something of a habit. When they reached the semi-finals in 2002, that was by far the best they have ever done, other than that a round of 16 appearance in South Africa was all they have managed. Traditionally a team of hard-workers, in recent years they have had a genuinely world-class talent as captain, Son Heung-Min. Son has been named in the 26-man squad, however after fracturing his eye-socket in a Champions League tie, it is questionable how much he will feature. Without his attacking talent, they will have to rely heavily on the defence, which could be better than ever.
Kim Min-jae, 26 (South Korea/Napoli)
Kim almost came out of nowhere for a lot of football fans. Without sounding harsh, not many people watch Turkish football and his move from Fenerbahce to Napoli this summer wasn’t a headline grabber. Nevertheless, Napoli have sailed through their UCL group containing the likes of Liverpool, Ajax and Rangers and they enter the winter break eight points clear at the top of Serie A. After 15 league games, Napoli are yet to lose, not only are they blistering in attack but they are also defensively solid, conceding just twelve goals.
From watching Kim’s game it is very clear that he excels in a few different areas. Firstly, his positional sense helps a lot. As a central defender, getting your positioning and feet right puts you on the right track and only aids other aspects of defensive play. Secondly, his anticipation of where to be next and which run to track is impressive. Seemingly, he rarely makes a bad decision and although sometimes aggressive in his play, it almost always pays off. And finally, it’s the knowing when to and when not to go to ground, which can often be an issue with over-eager defenders.
Let’s get into the underlying numbers. Comparisons have been made using FBRef by comparing other centre-backs stats against Kim’s. Data used comes from other defenders in the top five leagues across Europe and two major continental competitions (UCL and UEL).
We will start with something pretty expected from a defender and that is his aerial ability. For aerial duels won, Kim scored within the 88th percentile, winning on average 2.86 duels per 90. He is very athletic and his 6ft 2 frame does not hinder him in the slightest. His ability to get up in the air and win duels benefits him in both boxes, but mainly his own. It’s not just in aerial duels but he seems to have a good knack for being able to use his body in a way to make things awkward for his rival in a duel.
Finally, we will cover off three metrics in one. Kim plays in a very possession-based side and as such scores within the 84th percentile for passes attempted, this equates to an average per 90 of 67.41 passes. Of those 68 passes or so, 88.2% of them are completed, which ensures he is placed in the 79th percentile. While this might not be the highest score, it is still very impressive given the amount of passes he attempts. With his passes he is also able to create chances, while these are not expected assists, they do come in the form of getting an attack going. Kim scores within the 88th percentile for shot creating actions. These might usually manifest as a pass before an expected assist (xAG).
Without Son Heung-Min, there might not be much hope for South Korea at this tournament. But now they have a real spine of the team and at the base Kim Min-jae.
*All statistics taken from FBRef website
Statswise FC 