Uruguay v South Korea World Cup Group H Betting Guide

The Teams’ Routes to the World Cup

Uruguay

As usual, all ten nations from the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) entered the qualification process for the 2022 World Cup. Each team would play each other home and away in a league format. The top four placed teams within the league would qualify for the 2022 World Cup with 5th place being entered into an inter-continental play-off. Uruguay played 18 games winning 8, drawing four and losing 6 to claim their place in Qatar. In the process, they scored 22 goals and conceded 22 with Luis Suárez being their top scorer with 8 goals.

South Korea

The South Koreans were drawn into Group H of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) World Cup qualifying 2nd round. The top two places in the group would secure passage to the 3rd round of AFC qualification. With North Korea withdrawing due to their fear of COVID, South Korea played 6 games home and away against Lebanon, Turkmenistan and Sri Lanka, winning 5 and drawing 1 to reach the 3rd round. In Group H of the AFC qualifying 3rd round, South Korea was drawn against 5 teams to play home and away. A top-two finish in the group guaranteed a place in the 2022 World Cup finals. Coming up against Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, South Korea won 7 games, drew 2 and lost 1, scoring 13 goals and conceding 3 to finish in 2nd place.

Uruguay has an impressive record against South Korea with the teams playing each other on 8 previous occasions. Uruguay has won 6 times with 1 win for South Korea and 1 draw. The win for South Korea finally arrived the last time the two teams met in an international friendly where they won 2 – 1 in October 2018.

Current Odds at mr.play

As usual, here at mr.play you can place a bet on the most popular outcomes. These can include win, lose or draw, winning margins and both teams to score. The same will apply to the match between Uruguay and South Korea. If you think Uruguay will win the game you can currently receive odds at 3/20. Maybe you will think the Koreans will fare a little bit better and draw the game or even win it. If you place a wager against a draw then you will receive a price at 1/4, or if a stake is made against a South Korea win you can expect a return at 43/50. You can consider taking a chance on these outcomes or check out our excellent range of betting markets right here at mr.play.

Team Overviews & Player Profiles

Uruguay

Diego Alonso is one of the managers with the shortest reigns of a national team going into the 2022 World Cup finals. Appointed in 2021 as the Uruguayan national team manager, he has overseen 7 games, winning six and drawing 1 providing a fantastic win ratio of 85.71%. Remaining unbeaten to win the World Cup might be a bit far-fetched, but who knows? A former striker in his playing career, he played in the Argentinian, Mexican, Spanish and Chinese leagues before going into management. His managerial successes came in Mexico when won the CONCACAF Champions League in 2016/2017 with Panchucha and again in 2019 with Monterrey. Alonso had an unsuccessful spell as manager of Inter Miami before taking up the post of manager of Uruguay.

Not many players can bring more experience to their national team than Diego Godín. The centre-back has collected 159 international caps for Uruguay scoring 8 goals in the process. Captain of his national team he will provide leadership on the pitch, quite often by example, with intelligence, positioning and composure. He is now the nation’s most capped footballer having already featured in 3 World Cups and 6 Copa Américas. He featured 277 times playing for Atlético Madrid making him the foreign player with the most appearances for the club. He can also be a nuisance in the penalty area from set-pieces, especially in the big matches. For example, he is one of only six players to have scored a goal in the UEFA Champions League and Europa League finals. Not a bad shortlist to be included upon for being a centre-back.

South Korea

The South Koreans will need a positive start to the tournament and the man to instil confidence is manager Paulo Bento. Taking charge in 2018 he has led the team in 47 games, winning 30, drawing 11 and losing 6 giving a win ratio of 61.86%. He won 35 international caps for Portugal as a defensive midfielder and was the most successful manager of Sporting Lisbon winning 3 trophies. Aside from South Korea he has also managed the Portugal national team between 2010 and 2014 and led the team to the 2012 Euro semi-finals.

How will the South Koreans beat Uruguay at the 2022 World Cup? Look no further than Son-Heung Min, one of the greatest Asian footballers of all time. Captain of the team and leading by example, his speed, finishing and ability to play with both feet together with great link-up play will cause any opposition problems. Playing in the English Premier League for Tottenham Hotspur he was their player of the season in 2021/2022 and has now made 235 appearances scoring 93 goals for them. Son made his debut for South Korea in 2010 and has gone on to win 102 international caps scoring 33 goals. His abilities will see him enter the top 10 most capped players for South Korea before or during the 2022 World Cup and he is joint 4th in the goalscoring charts. He is so good he has won Asian Footballer of the Year in 7 out of the past 8 football seasons.

A Thrilling Start to Group H

A super first Group H fixture sees Uruguay, the winners of the 1930 World Cup, as the favourites to beat South Korea. The South Koreans are a team that have only recently started playing in the tournament. Will the experienced campaigners of Uruguay overcome the ‘Tigers of Asia’ in what will be a fascinating first-round tie in Group H? You can check out the massive range of betting markets available for Uruguay versus South Korea right here at mr.play.