Brazil suffered a shock defeat to Cameroon in their last match but still won Group G after obtaining six points. They face a South Korea side who qualified for the Last 16 in dramatic fashion.
Wolves striker Hwang Hee-chan netted in the 92nd minute to beat Portugal in their final group game. They faced a nervous wait but progressed by virtue of goals scored! Stadium 974 in Doha is the venue for this match.
Below, you’ll find a treasure trove of key stats from the teams’ World Cup qualification campaigns. Use the data below in conjunction with my Stats Pack Guide to construct stronger bet builders for the game.
Predicted Lineups
The big question on everyone’s lips is whether Neymar will be fit enough to start. The manager has confirmed he’s been back in training, and it will be a game time decision whether he gets in the XI. Lucas Paquetá would likely play in the #10 role if Neymar is not available.
Danilo returns to the side and will be filling in at left back, with Alex Sandro still not fit enough to start, and Alex Telles ruled out of the rest of the tournament due to injury. It is the exact same for Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus. Eder Militao will continue at right back.
Kim Min-jae was the biggest injury doubt for South Korea. The Napoli centre back missed the Portugal game due a calf problem but is fit enough to make the South Korea XI tonight. South Korea have been operating in a 4-3-3 system and there is little to suggest that will change, even though Brazil are the opposition.
Team Stats
Brazil are known for their free scoring nature but have only netted three times at this World Cup so far. Their xG per 90 mins is 2.43 though and this suggests they’ve been significantly underachieving.
Brazil have kept 2 out of 3 clean sheets and have an xGA of 0.75 per match which is an excellent statistic. The Seleção have averaged a massive 19 shots per game, but their accuracy has been mixed with exactly 7.0 shots per 90 mins on target.
At the other end of the field Brazil have only faced three SOTs in three games which is a ridiculously low number. Brazil have been picking up a lot of corners, 8.33 per game on average. They’ve drawn an average of three cards per match from their opponents which is no surprise considering their technical excellence.
South Korea have averaged 1.33 goals per match which is an underachievement compared to their xG of 1.79. Defensively, their xGA of 1.32 correlates exactly to their four total goals conceded. South Korea have surprisingly fired in a lot of shots during this tournament, an average of 14 per game so far.
However, their SOT rate per match is only 4.00 so they have not been very accurate. They rank quite high for corners obtained per 90 mins (6.67) and have picked up 1.67 cards per game. South Korea have only drawn three cards from their opponents all tournament.
Player Shots and Shots on Target
Rodrygo and Neymar are the two biggest shooters in this Brazil team. Neymar averages 4.44 per 90 mins and Rodrygo even more at 4.62! Brazil have not been the most accurate team in this tournament, but Raphinha has a 100% SOT rate with 1.58 per 90 mins.
Nobody else has more than 50% of their efforts on target. Richarlison will likely start upfront for Brazil in this match and has averaged close to three shots per 90 mins. From the left wing, Vinicius Junior has similar statistics and has been knocking on the goalscoring door.
Hwang Hee-chan came off the bench vs Portugal and made an immediate impact to the South Korea attack, averaging 3.33 shots per game. Cho Gue-sung is their leading scorer in the competition and has averaged a high number of shots, 4.09 per 90 mins with an impressive 2.27 on target. Son Heung-min has been disappointing with his accuracy, averaging just 0.67 SOT per game from 2.67 overall shots per 90 mins.
Player Goals and Assists
Richarlison is the leading goalscorer for Brazil thanks to his two goals vs Serbia. Casemiro is the only other scorer for them in this tournament thanks to his excellent strike vs Switzerland. Vinicius and Rodrygo have one assist each.
Vinicius had an unfortunate goal disallowed vs Switzerland. Brazil rested a lot of players in their final group game which meant their key players couldn’t add to their attacking statistics vs Cameroon.
Cho Gue-sung is the leading scorer for South Korea at this World Cup, netting twice so far. Y.G.Kim and Hwang Hee-chan both have one each, with Hwang getting the famous late winner vs Portugal. Son Heung-min has one assist with left back J.S.Kim also supplying one goal. Son would be the leading candidate to score or assist due to his experience and high level of quality.
BRAZIL Cards
Only three Brazil players have picked up yellow cards at this World Cup, Fred, Bruno Guimaraes and Éder Militão. Of that trio, Fred is probably the most likely starter and has averaged 1.43 fouls per 90 mins.
Both Bruno and Éder Militão have an average of 2.50 fouls, so this is worth watching out for when they are on the field. Veteran Thiago Silva has only fouled twice in his two appearances and played a very clean World Cup so far.
Hwang Hee-chan has only played just over 25 mins of action at this World Cup but has been fouled on average 6.67 times. K.I.Lee has been fouled on average 2.86 times per 90 mins but is not projected to start.
Despite his trickery, Son Heung-min has only been fouled on average 1.33 times but is usually the prime candidate in this South Korea side to draw cards due to his excellent technical skills. Left back J.S.Kim does like to get forward and drawn 1.67 fouls per match from his opponents.
Match-Ups to watch
Éder Militão vs J.S.Kim
Fred vs Son Heung-min
Hwang Hee-chan vs Thiago Silva
SOUTH KOREA Cards
Five players in this South Korea squad have picked up cards so far in the World Cup. Hwang Hee-chan hasn’t even fouled but obtained a yellow card for celebrating a goal. The two biggest foul culprits for South Korea are midfielder W.Y.Jung and striker Cho Gue-sung.
Jung could be in major trouble vs Neymar if he starts, whilst Cho vs Thiago Silva is a matchup where the veteran Brazilian defender might tempt him into a few fouls. Defender Y.G.Kim has a low foul average but has picked up a card.
Neymar only played vs Serbia but was fouled an incredible ten times in that fixture! He is a technical wizard and is the obvious candidate to draw both fouls and cards should he play in this game.
Vinicius Junior has been fouled on average 3.33 times per 90 mins and Richarlison 1.76 times. The Brazilian attacking players are the obvious candidates to cause problems to the South Korean defence where the Asian outfit face some tough matchups.
Match-Ups to watch
W.J.Jung vs Neymar or Lucas Paquetá
Cho Gue-sung vs Thiago Silva
Y.G.Kim vs Richarlison
