Jeon Jin-woo (26, Jeonbuk Hyundai) scored his first A-match debut goal in front of his 'mentor', Gus Poyet.

The South Korean national soccer team, led by coach Hong Myung-bo, is facing Kuwait in the final match of the 10th round of Group B in the 3rd Asian qualifying round for the 2026 FIFA World Cup at the Seoul World Cup Stadium at 8 p.m. on the 10th.

Korea has already secured qualification for the finals. On the 6th, they won 2-0 in an away match against Iraq, marking a historic 11th consecutive qualification for the World Cup. This is the first time in Asia and the sixth overall globally. In Group B, Korea (19 points) and Jordan (16 points) have both secured direct tickets to the World Cup.

Now Korea aims to challenge for an unbeaten qualifying streak. Currently, the national team has recorded 10 wins and 5 draws in the 2nd and 3rd qualifying rounds for the North and Central American World Cup, remaining undefeated. If they achieve at least a draw in the final match against Kuwait, they will accomplish an unbeaten qualifying streak for the first time in 16 years since the 2010 South Africa World Cup.

Objectively, Korea holds a significant advantage. Korea is ranked 23rd in the FIFA rankings, 111 places above Kuwait, which is ranked 134th. In their head-to-head record, Korea has overwhelmingly dominated with 13 wins, 4 draws, and 8 losses, including a recent 5-game winning streak.

Korea started with a 4-2-3-1 formation. Oh Hyun-kyu, Bae Jun-ho, Lee Kang-in, Jeon Jin-woo, Won Du-jae, Hwang In-beom, Seol Young-woo, Kim Joo-sung, Lee Han-bum, Lee Tae-seok, and Lee Chang-geun were the starting players. Lee Han-bum is making his A-match debut, while Jeon Jin-woo, Kim Joo-sung, and Lee Chang-geun are making their starting A-match debuts.

Notably, attention is focused on Jeon Jin-woo's performance. This season, he has scored 11 goals and provided 1 assist in 17 K League 1 matches, leading in scoring. As a result, Jeonbuk is racing ahead in first place with 10 wins, 5 draws, and 2 losses (35 points), having played fewer matches than Daejeon in 2nd and Ulsan in 3rd.

Recognizing his remarkable performance, Jeon Jin-woo received a call-up from coach Hong Myung-bo for this June's A-match, marking his first inclusion in the senior national team. On the 6th, in the away match against Iraq, he came on as a substitute in the second half and assisted Oh Hyun-kyu's additional goal, thereby registering an attacking point. Jeon Jin-woo has now also seized the opportunity for his starting debut in the match against Kuwait.

Poyet, who is managing Jeonbuk, visited the Seoul World Cup Stadium to observe Jeon Jin-woo's performance. He has transformed Jeon Jin-woo into the top striker in K League 1 this season, and he took his seat in the VIP section alongside Lee Dohyun, Director General, Michael Kim, the technical director, and Jung Jo-guk, the coach. Not only Jeon Jin-woo, but also Kim Jin-kyu and Park Jin-seob from Jeonbuk were sitting on the bench.

Jeon Jin-woo managed to score the opening goal with a stroke of luck. In the 30th minute of the first half, Hwang In-beom delivered a corner kick from the left, and Jeon Jin-woo rushed in and attempted a header. The ball, which awkwardly flowed backward, hit Al-Hajri's leg and was sucked into the goal.

Initially, Jeon Jin-woo's A-match debut goal was officially recorded as an own goal by Al-Hajri on the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) website. However, it has since been corrected to reflect Jeon Jin-woo's goal. He is literally making goals stick in both the K League 1 and A-matches.

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