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Players for Korea’s national football team rush onto the field to celebrate their victory over Portugal in their third match of the Group H playoffs at Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, on Dec. 3 (KST). (Yonhap)

“Even if there’s only a 1% chance, I will take those odds and keep my eyes on the prize in the little time left.”

Captain of the Korean national soccer team, Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur) posted this on his personal Instagram account on Nov. 9 when it was still uncertain whether he would participate in the World Cup after sustaining a facial fracture.

This sentence, which showed his determination to participate in the World Cup, encapsulates Team Korea’s resolve in this tournament.

Gracenote, an American metadata company, had put South Korea’s chances of advancing to the top 16 at 11%.

Clinging to the sliver of hope for advancing, Korea’s players turned the 1 into 100 in their game against Portugal held in Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, on Saturday.

Son’s black mask symbolizes his passion to fight on. Three weeks before the World Cup, Son injured his face and was prescribed at least eight weeks of rest. However, the Korean team’s captain showed amazing resilience as he took to the field donning the black mask.

Some argued that he should be swapped out on the pitch after showing a lackluster performance during the first and second matches of the tournament, but Son sprinted to create a perfect scoring opportunity against Portugal in the second half’s added time.

Son, who shed tears after being a key figure in the “Miracle of Kazan” in 2018, pulled off yet another miracle for Korea at this year’s World Cup.

Hwang Hee-chan and Son Heung-min embrace after scoring a goal to come back from behind during their match against Portugal at Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, on Dec. 3 (Korea time). (Yonhap)

Hwang Hee-chan, who secured the “Miracle of Al Rayyan” for Korea was not operating at 100% this go-around either. Early last month, Hwang injured his left hamstring and missed out on the first and second rounds of the tournament.

Hwang had been reduced to tears after Korea’s defeat by Ghana. He was substituted in the second half and, after receiving the ball passed from Son, shot a clean goal with his right foot.

After the match Hwang showed his resolution for the future game, saying, “I won’t focus on having ‘fun’ in this game just because we’re facing off against Brazil. I really, really want to show everyone how good we are by winning.”

The surprise showing by rising star Cho Gue-sung (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors) was also brilliant. In Korea’s match against Ghana on Nov. 28, Cho appeared like a comet by scoring two goals during the second half.

He scored two header goals against Ghana, whose defenders are known for their height. Thanks to Cho, South Korea was able to beat out Uruguay in the rankings, as the South American team had only scored two goals while South Korea scored four. It was a close call between the two countries since South Korea and Uruguay were tied for points and the goal difference was at zero, which made the victory even sweeter with Cho’s timely goals.

After the game against Portugal, Cho said, “If you cheer us on until the very end, we’ll show everyone what we can on the field,” signaling his ambition to put Korea on the scoreboard against Brazil.

Kim Young-gwon gives a thumbs up to the stands after scoring a goal to tie up the game against Portugal at Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, on Dec. 3 (Korea time). (Yonhap)

Although he was not in the spotlight like many of the strikers, Kim Young-gwon (Ulsan Hyundai) also showed his invaluable role on the team. Kim had been the starting point of the “Miracle of Kazan,” as he scored the first goal against Germany at the Russia World Cup in 2018, he also played a major part in the match against Portugal by scoring the equalizing goal.

Since this is his third World Cup, Kim held the defense together, even with the absence of Kim Min-jae (Napoli). He also acted as a charismatic leader by making sure that the other players kept their eyes on the prize after losing a point.

These players who made history will now try to pull off another miracle when they face Brazil at Stadium 974 in Doha, Qatar, at 4 am on Tuesday (KST).

By Lee Jun-hee, staff reporter

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]