Brazil to beat South Korea but not without a scare
Few observers would've predicted that South Korea would be meeting Brazil in the last 16 of the 2022 Qatar World Cup prior to the tournament, and this view would've been even more prevalent when the Taeguk Warriors were a goal down to Portugal and on a single point during their final group game. However, a stirring comeback coupled with equally dramatic events in the Ghana-Uruguay fixture ensured Paulo Bento's men scraped through, with their reward being an encounter with the tournament favourites on Monday evening at Stadium 974 in Doha. The victors will play either Croatia or Japan, giving all the incentive the underdogs need to raise their game one more time. Read our preview here:
Hee-chan's last laugh
One of the reasons the tournament has been so fascinating, aside from the shock results in the group stage, has been the rehabilitation of reputations damaged by poor club form. For differing reasons, superstar Heung-min Son and Hee-chan Hwang have had underwhelming campaigns at club level for Tottenham Hotspur and Wolverhampton Wanderers respectively, especially in the latter's case. Having done nothing of note for the badly misfiring West Midlands outfit, the forward timed his run to perfection to get the injury time goal to seal qualification after being set up by the best pass of the tournament by an otherwise off-colour Son, who is still in truth recovering from a fractured eye socket injury sustained against Marseille. Both should start on opposite flanks, with Min-jae Kim also returning to the fold. The towering centre back will be utterly critical to any success his side have in the game.
A Case for the defence
Though Tite rung the changes for their third and final group game with passage through already secured, his 'reserves' proved the squad are human after all with a surprise 1-0 defeat to Cameroon, a result and performance Bento would've taken note of. Gabriel Jesus, who started that loss, has subsequently been ruled out of the rest of the competition through injury, though Neymar could make a comeback after missing the last two matches. Perhaps the most consistently excellent performer thus far for A Seleção has been Casemiro, who has combined screening the back four with getting forward as his side often attempt to camp out in the opponents' final third. The Manchester United midfielder popped up with the decisive and only goal against Switzerland, proving that beyond prodigiously talented forwards Richarlison, Vinícius Júnior, and Neymar himself, there are others who are more than capable of inflicting damage. His role will also be key in nullifying Korean counters, with his colleagues expected to have the lion's share of possession.
Betting tip
Brazil are big favourites to progress and win the tournament overall. Neymar's likely return to the fold will definitely help realise that dream, but he and his colleagues would be loath to dismiss the threat of South Korea. Even an off-colour Son remains one of the very best on the planet in key moments. bet365 have odds of 3.40 for the five-time winners to get through with both teams scoring in 90 minutes.
