This serves as a warning: Portugal coach after loss to South Korea
Following the loss to South Korea in their group stage FIFA World Cup match, Portugal head coach Fernando Santos said the side needed to be more forceful against their opponent, and though he trusts his team and does not think they will be unmotivated, the loss still serves as a warning.
Hwang Hee-chan’s goal in stoppage time helped South Korea stun Portugal 2-1 in their last Group H match of the FIFA World Cup 2022 being played here at the Education City Stadium. With this win, the Koreans made it to the pre-quarterfinals. “We needed to be more forceful when playing Korea. We tried to explore several strategies to counter the Korean squad, focusing on the different wingers and full-backs. We created several opportunities on goal, we could have scored more,” Sky Sports quoted the coach as saying after the
match.
“We needed to correct our mistakes in the first 20 minutes, have more quick passes, and were having some difficulties and needed to improve our game to finish. After that, we lost our organisation. Korea was controlling the game, we lost focus, and our players were motivated, but we conceded a goal when they were counter-attacking.”
“That is normal in any part of the tournament, it can happen. Therefore, we are somewhat upset. We are first in the group, but we wanted to win and have a better game in order to increase the morale of the players. That said, I don’t think they will be unmotivated, they are playing well, and I trust my team. That serves as a warning for us, though,” said Santos.