Uzbekistan to try to take all three points in Korea Republic clash

The two sides have relocated from Songkhla to Pathum Thani, but Kim hopes his side’s results will remain the same after recording wins over China PR and Islamic Republic of Iran with vastly different starting line-ups.

Korea Republic’s heavily altered starting line-up in Sunday’s 2-1 win over Iran showed just how much quality Kim has to work with, with Lee Dong-jun and Cho Gue-sung scoring the goals after being promoted to the starting side.

With so many options at his fingertips, Kim was unsurprisingly content to keep Uzbekistan guessing regarding his starting line-up.

Meanwhile, Ljubinko Drulovic believes his Uzbekistan side are on the up after a confidence-boosting 2-0 win over China PR took them to within one point of the knockout stage.

Islom Kobilov and Nurillo Tukhtasinov both found the back of the net for the holders, but it could easily have been a wider margin in a match Uzbekistan dominated from start to finish, and Drulovic believes the momentum built among his side will serve them well against a strong Korean outfit.

Korea Republic will win Group C with a win or draw, while Uzbekistan will top the group should they take all three points, with a White Wolves defeat potentially opening the door for Iran to claim second place.