The face of South Korean football, captain Son Heung-min was not having his finest 2026 World Cup performance through the first two fixtures against Czechia and Mexico. But even though he was not at his sharpest, Son still had some nice moments when he was able to get away from being restricted to the middle of the box, moving around fluidly and creating opportunities with a few nice moments as a dribbler, and his off ball movement to find space highlighted a savvy that has not declined with age.
It had become clear to everyone watching South Korea and familiar with Son's game that Hong Myung-bo, the country's mercurial and grossly incompetent manager, was not making the best use of his best attacking player. And yes, even at the age of 33 and in MLS, Son is still South Korea's best attacking option, particularly when you look beyond the goals.
But instead of rectifying his own tactical mistakes and playing Son as a left winger, utilzing his all around skill set out wide instead of restricting him with no service in the middle on an underperforming team, Myung-bo went full nuclear and inexplicably benched Son.
Tottenham fans will feel for Son Heung-min
That's right. Facing a must win matchup against South Africa in the final game of the World Cup group stages, South Korea's manager benched its best all time player and national team hero, and he watched as South Korea looked completely deflated and overmatched, producing nothing in the form of attacking solutions.
The South Korea coach brought Son in the second half, but not only had the damage already been done by then, but he still managed to screw things up for Son Heung-min tactically by once again restricting him to the middle of the park instead of allowing him to roam in a more free role on the wings and play in transition.
South Korea were unable to play as a team, and their manager undermined his players by making bizarre lineup decisions based more on favoritism, politics, and his own ego than which players suit the best positions and work well together. There was no ethos of how to attack and no game plan, and the manager's benching of Son in the decisive game was the classic move of a failing coach throwing a superstar on the bus to try and prove that the star was the problem and he is the genius. But Myung-bo is no genius, and his not so great gambit failed spectacularly. South Korea are agonizingly close to another early exit.
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