World Cup 2014 Preview: Hong offers hope for South Korea

Jun 2, 2014 - 7:59 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - South Korea will make its eighth consecutive appearance in the World Cup, but will need to significantly improve its form following a difficult qualification cycle to have any hope of making noise in Brazil.

Unlike its fierce rivals, Japan, South Korea stumbled through Group A of Asian qualifying, finishing with a 4-2-2 record for 14 points and second place in the group behind Iran.

The Koreans lost twice to Iran, both by 1-0 score lines, and also fell, 2-1 to Lebanon. But thanks to back-to-back wins over Qatar and Lebanon, the Taegeuk Warriors made it through by the skin of their collective teeth, squeaking into the tournament on goal difference.

The campaign was arduous and it came at a cost as head coach Choi-Kang Hee stepped aside and was replaced by Hong Myung-Bo.

Hong is the country's most-capped player and was on the field for its proudest moment when South Korea reached the 2002 semifinals on home soil. Now that he is on the touch line, he offers hope that he can lead his country back to success.

South Korea is one of the youngest teams in Brazil, but it also plays some attractive football as wingers drift in and out and fullbacks freely overlap.

The Koreans boast a pair of top-quality midfielders in Sunderland's Ki Sung- Yueng and Cardiff City's Kim Bo-Kyung who are in the primes of their careers at 25 and 24 years old, respectively.

Ki pulls the strings in the attack from the middle with smooth control and is also a significant threat on set-pieces. His delivery from corner kicks is deadly accurate, and he has made a habit of getting free to score on free kicks in Premier League play.

Kim made a move to Cardiff City from Japanese side Cerezo Osaka after some inspired performances at the 2012 Olympics and has done well for a Cardiff City side that was relegated from the Premier League.

Korea occasionally struggles going forward with too many square and negative passes, but Kim's vision and incisive passing ability from midfield keeps the side moving in the correct direction.

Bayer Leverkusen forward Son Heung-Min will carry the scoring burden for South Korea, despite being just 21 years of age.

Son made his name by netting 12 goals for Hamburg last season, earning a transfer to Leverkusen. More goals have come this season for his new German club and he is South Korea's top scorer under Hong, with four tallies in eight games.

Good with both feet and possessing plenty of speed, Son is Korea's most dynamic forward and can play through the middle or on the flanks.

Placed in Group H along with Belgium, Russia and Algeria, Asia's most successful nation certainly has a chance to reach the knockout stages.

With Belgium pegged to win the group. Korea's fate likely lies in the outcome of its match against Russia on June 17.