China- South Korea match to be ‘ purely a football event’

The upcoming World Cup qualifier in Changsha, Central China’s Hunan Province will be purely a sporting event between the Chinese national football team and their South Korean counterpart, said a senior Chinese football commentator.

In the two 2018 World Cup qualifier matches, China will take on South Korea and Iran in Changsha on March 23 and 28 respectively.

China ranks bottom in the six- team Group A, seven points adrift of third place. Only the top three teams have hopes of a World Cup berth. In the previous phase, China suffered a 3- 2 defeat to South Korea in Seoul before holding Iran to a scoreless draw at home in Shenyang in September last year.

The South Korean team have become a powerhouse in Asia in recent years due to the focus of their footballers on elevating their skills, said Wang Dazhao, a Beijing- based football commentator.

Wang told the Global Times that China, at home, can also learn more from a strong opponent like South Korea.

The game will kick off amid tensions between the two countries after Seoul decided to deploy the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system.

South Korean Joongang Daily’s Friday report said that Beijing rejected South Korean national football team’s proposal to fly on a private plane. The Red Devils, Korea’s official football fan club, decided to send only 50 fans to root for their team “for reasons of safety.”

A publicity department official with the China Football Association told the Global Times on Tuesday that she was unaware about the rejection of such a request.