Turkmenistan vs South Korea 10/09/19

10 September 2019

South Korea will kick-off their 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign at the Köpetdag Stadium in Ashgabat as they lock horns with Turkmenistan.

The hosts will be looking to build on a 2-0 away win over Sri Lanka in their WCQ opener which was their first win in five outings since the turn of the year (W1, D1, L3). All of their defeats in 2019 came in the Asian Cup, and each has seen them concede three or more goals. The odds are against Turkmenistan here, as they’ve never managed to qualify for the World Cup and have also lost two of their competitive H2Hs with South Korea, both of which have seen them concede over 2.5 match goals and score one or less. However, the Karakum Warriors have finished their last WCQ campaign without a single home defeat (W3, D1), with each of their wins in that period coming by a narrow one-goal margin in their favor.

Meanwhile, the visitors have tasted only one loss in ten outings since the turn of the year (W6, D3, L1), as they look to successfully negotiate this qualifying campaign just like they did in the last nine attempts. Five of their six triumphs in 2019 have seen them beat their opponents to nil, with four of those wins ending with the same 1-0 scoreline. But, going back to March 2018, the Taeguk Warriors have won only two of six trips, friendlies and the 2018 FIFA World Cup included (W2, D1, L3). Four of those matches have witnessed South Korea score one goal or less although just two have seen them concede over 1.5 match goals.