Mexico Defeats South Korea, 2-1 : Flores Scores Both Goals at Coliseum to Avenge 1980 Loss
Two goals by forward Luis Flores earned Mexico a 2-1 victory over South Korea Tuesday night in an international soccer match played in front of 24,500 fans at the Coliseum.
The match between the World Cup teams was one of the more entertaining seen at the Coliseum this year, with both sides playing a wide-open style of attacking soccer.
The victory kept intact Mexico’s record of not having lost a game in Los Angeles since February, 1980, when South Korea won, 1-0. After a hesitant start, Coach Bora Milutinovic’s team looked far more cohesive and enterprising than it had in a dreary 1-1 tie with Argentina three weeks ago.
Although beaten, the South Koreans were by no means outclassed. In fact, for much of the game they looked the better team. Individually and collectively, they showed the skills that earned them their place in next summer’s World Cup finals in Mexico.
Byung Joo Byun’s speed on the right wing often made life miserable for the Mexican defense, while midfielder Tae Ho Lee, a player of tremendous skill and vision, caused all sorts of problems with a series of well-timed and well-placed passes.
Likewise, 19-year-old Joo Sung Kim, a student at Cho Sun University, showed the potential of developing into a truly top-class player, while former North American Soccer League player Young Jeung Cho provided some much-needed experience on defense.
South Korea is unlikely to win many games in Mexico next year, but, given the team’s attractive and adventurous style of play, it will be a team well worth watching.
On Tuesday, playing their first game since knocking Japan out of the World Cup a month ago, the South Koreans came out firing, their first shot on goal coming just nine seconds into the game.
That shot by Jong Boo Kim flew high and wide, but it did indicate that the South Koreans were not going to sit back and wait for Mexico to bring the game to them.
Despite being without its leading offensive star, Soon Ho Choi, injured during the final qualifying game against Japan, South Korea applied most of the early pressure.
Jong Boo Kim’s sharp downward header off a corner kick in the ninth minute was fielded by Mexican goalie Pablo Larios one one bounce and, 90 seconds later, Chang Sun Park blasted a shot just wide of the left post.
Mexico gradually settled down and began mounting offensive forays of its own, almost scoring in the 13th minute after a mix-up in the Korean defense, which seemed curiously tentative in clearing the ball from its goal area.
Almost immediately thereafter, however, at 13:45, South Korea took the lead when a long downfield kick bounced toward the Mexican goal area and Larios, the Mexican goalkeeper, was forced to come way out of his net to head the ball away. It fell at the feet of Joo Sung Kim, who, spotting the unguarded net, fired and saw his partially deflected shot drop in beneath the crossbar.
The goal sent the 6,000 or so Korean fans in the crowd into a flag-waving frenzy, but they were soon quieted when Mexico took advantage of another lapse in the South Korean defense.
This time a corner kick led to a scramble in front of the Mexican net, the Koreans again failed to clear the ball, and Flores drove it home from close range, his shot finding the opposite corner of the net beyond the reach of a diving Yun Kyo Oh, the Korean goalkeeper.
Flores’ second goal, 12:24 into the second half, was the best of the night. It came on a diving header off a free kick and was spinning in the back of the net before Oh could say his name.
