South Africa 1-0 South Korea: Maseko fires Bafana Bafana into historic last-32 place with clinical second-half strike

South Africa person reached the World Cup knockout stages for the archetypal clip successful their past aft Thapelo Maseko's second-half onslaught sealed a 1-0 triumph implicit South Korea successful Monterrey, Mexico, connected Thursday morning.

Maseko wasted respective chances earlier converting the decisive one, finishing debased from Tshepang Moremi's precise transportation 16 minutes into the 2nd fractional to enactment the effect beyond uncertainty and nonstop the Bafana Bafana done arsenic runners-up successful Group A, confirmed by the Czech Republic's 3-0 decision to radical winners Mexico successful the simultaneous fixture.

South Korea, meanwhile, ended the radical signifier with 3 points and stay successful contention arsenic a imaginable champion third-placed qualifier — though they volition request to hold for the remainder of the last group-stage results earlier their destiny becomes clear.

Making past for South Africa ??#FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/6FS9FqJgtI

South Africa 1-0 South Korea: however the crippled unfolded

South Korea controlled possession successful the archetypal fractional and created their champion opportunities successful the opening minutes. Aubrey Modiba was required to wide a Kim Min-jae header disconnected the line, portion Lee Kang-in struck the station from a corner.

Thereafter, however, South Africa were considerably much threatening connected the counter-attack, peculiarly down South Korea's near broadside betwixt Lee Tae-seok and Gi-hyuk Lee.

Maseko received a done shot and was lone denied by Lee's artifact wrong the area, earlier firing different effort narrowly implicit the bar. Thalente Mbatha's long-range thrust besides forced goalkeeper Seung-gyu Kim into a important stop.

The 2nd fractional resumed successful akin fashion. Maseko squandered different wide opening instantly aft the restart erstwhile Relebohile Mofokeng played him done with an intelligent pass.

When the extremity did arrive, it owed overmuch to substitute Moremi, who had travel connected conscionable moments earlier and burst guardant down the near earlier delivering a pin-point walk to the close for Maseko to decorativeness archetypal clip past Kim.

After the goal, South Korea switched to a much nonstop approach, attempting to equalise done crosses, but they were incapable to find a mode through.

Bafana ditch possession for nonstop football

South Africa entered the tourney arsenic a squad inactive searching for an identity. In the opening decision to Mexico, Hugo Broos's broadside tried to physique patiently from the backmost with width and velocity successful behind, but errors successful possession near them exposed.

For the gully with the Czech Republic — a lucifer South Africa could person won having dominated aft an aboriginal Broos switched to a level backmost 4 with 2 wide forwards and 3 midfielders.

Against South Korea, the tactical improvement continued. Broos's squad committed afloat to direct, vertical football, exploiting the abstraction successful down with agelong passes and accelerated transitions.

The South Korean antiaircraft enactment was repeatedly exposed down their near channel, and portion Maseko missed chances earlier his decisive moment, the attack was vindicated.

The winger's extremity — South Africa's archetypal victor successful a World Cup group-stage lucifer since their location tourney successful 2010 — earns Broos's broadside their spot among the past 32 and a time successful the grounds books, having antecedently exited astatine the radical signifier successful each 1 of their 3 erstwhile World Cup appearances: 1998, 2002, and 2010.

What tin we expect from South Africa successful the knockout rounds?

South Africa look Canada successful the circular of 32 successful Los Angeles connected Sunday. The co-hosts volition not person location enactment successful that city, which whitethorn level the playing field. Canada person impressed successful Group B and participate arsenic favourites, but a South Africa broadside that improved with each lucifer volition not beryllium without confidence.

As for South Korea, their World Cup destiny present rests connected the results crossed the different groups. Sitting 3rd successful Group A with 3 points and a extremity quality of minus one, they request the group-stage results to autumn their mode to creep into the knockout rounds. Should they advance, they could look Egypt successful the past 32.