The South Korea national football team lost 0-1 to Mexico in the second match of Group A in the 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup at the Estadio Akron in Guadalajara, Mexico on the 19th. Korea, which had won the previous match against the Czech Republic, failed to achieve its goal of advancing to the round of 32 early. With one win and one loss, Korea maintained its second place in the group, while Mexico secured its spot in the tournament with two consecutive wins. Former Korea coach Jurgen Klinsmann analyzed the loss to Mexico calmly. He acknowledged Mexico's victory while giving high praise to Korea's fightback in the second half. Klinsmann said, 'Mexico showed very good performance in the first half' and 'although they didn't have many decisive chances, the players' connection and tempo were good.' Korea held on to a 0-0 score in the first half and gradually took control of the game by increasing its possession. However, in the 5th minute of the second half, Kim Seung-gyu and Lee Ki-hyeok's breathing didn't match, and Luis Romo pushed in the ball that flowed out. Klinsmann said, 'After Mexico scored, they fell back defensively like a typical Central and South American team' and 'from that moment on, Korea started to dominate the game again.' He added, 'Korea has attacking resources that can threaten its opponents at any time' and 'in fact, in the last 30 minutes, Korea showed much better performance than in the previous 60 minutes and created more chances.' In particular, he mentioned Cho Kyu-sung's decisive header scene in the final minutes of the game. Klinsmann said, 'Goalkeeper Raul Langle made a fantastic save against Cho Kyu-sung' and 'if it were the usual Cho Kyu-sung, it would have been a scene that could have been connected to a goal.' However, he expressed regret over the timing of Hong Myung-bo's substitutions. Coach Hong put in Oh Hyun-gyu, Hwang Hee-chan, Yang Hyun-jun, Eom Ji-sung, and Cho Kyu-sung in the second half to try and turn the game around. Regarding this, Klinsmann said, 'Korea's attacking substitutions were effective' but 'I think they should have made the change a bit earlier. If they had made the change around the 10th or 15th minute of the second half, it would have been better.'