South Korea vs Germany FIFA World Cup 2018 – Lineups, Predictions & Stats Preview 27 June 2018
South Korea vs Germany - a match in which few would expect anything but domination from a strong German side. But as we've witnessed plenty of times already in this wacky World Cup, FIFA rankings and stature mean nothing.
South Korea Probable Lineups and Stats
A less than impressive start to South Korea’s campaign, losing 1-0 against an unimpressive Sweden, has already seen them one player down, due to a pulled hamstring. Joo-Ho Parks presence will be missed, given that they will be defending against the Germans and their almost-unstoppable midfield that, on paper at least, are one of the finest in world football.
South Korea did show a bit of grit in their second game of the tournament, in which they lost 1-2. But with more shots than Mexico – 17-13 respectively, and a last-minute goal, they really did fight till the end. But, sadly, unless something extraordinary happens, it will likely be just that for their World Cup campaign… The end.
Mathematically, though, it is still possible if Mexico overcome Sweden in the simultaneous Group F game on Wednesday. So South Korea will probably look to Tottenham star, Heung-Min Son, to bag them some goals. Minimal changes will be made from their lineup against Mexico, with Ja-Cheol Koo expected to make a return in midfield, having missed the encounter with the South Americans.
Germany Probable Lineups and Stats
Germany truly flopped in their first game, suffering defeat at the hands of the Mexicans. A 0-1 loss was a kind scoreline for the Germans, on that day. In their second game against Sweden, well, they were lucky. They were lucky to scrape a late, late winner in the 95th minute to win 2-1. To be fair to the Germans, they did deserve it. With 75% of the possession, they held the ball well; they just didn’t look clinical in front of goal until the dying moments. With a world-class first 11, and a world-class bench, it’s only a matter of time before the Germans really turn it on. Surely?
Matt Hummels will most likely replace the suspended Boateng at centre-back and Löw will be thinking attack-minded when setting up his midfield, with Müller, Reus and Brandt probably starting just behind Werner upfront. Apart from a change here and there, the line-up won’t differ much to that which beat Sweden.
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South Korea v Germany – Head to Head
The last competitive meet between South Korea and Germany was the Semi-Finals of the 2002 World Cup where Germany won 0-1. Before that – the 1994 World Cup Group Stages. Germany won that day, too – 3-2. The only other encounter between the two sides is an International Friendly in December 2004. Korea came out on top on this occasion – 3-1 and they will be hoping to do the same, come Wednesday.Expert Tip
According to the bookmakers, this should be a one-sided game in favour of Germany who are marked as the outstanding favourite, with which we agree. However, with the Germans struggling to meet their high standards we expect no more than a one nil win. The odds are very high for Under 2.5 goals and we think this should be taken advantage of.Interesting Facts and Information
- The Republic of Korea haven’t won in their last 5 games.
- Republic of Korea have lost 3 matches in a row.
- The Republic of Korea wins 1st half in 20% of their matches, Germany in 50% of their matches.
- Germany’s recent performance is better than Republic of Korea’s.
- In World Cup, Germany has better performance than Republic of Korea.
- Germany have lost just 1 of their last 3 games against Republic of Korea (in all competitions).
- In the last 3 meetings Republic of Korea won 1, Germany won 2, 0 draws.
- The winner of their last meeting was Republic of Korea.
- On their last meeting Republic of Korea won by 2 goals.
- The Republic of Korea scores 1.67 goals in a match against Germany and Germany scores 1.67 goals against the Republic of Korea (on average).
- The Republic of Korea scores 1.09 goals when playing at home and Germany scores 1.4 goals when playing away (on average).
- The average number of goals in meetings between Republic of Korea and Germany is 3.33.
- When the Republic of Korea leads 1-0 at home, they win in 100% of their games.
- When Germany leads 0-1 away, they win in 75% of their games.
- When the Republic of Korea is down 0-1 home, they win 0% of their games.
- The average number of goals in the first half in meetings between Republic of Korea and Germany is 1.67.
- Germany have conceded a goal in each of their last 7 games.
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