Son blames bad pitches as South Korea slip up in World Cup qualifying

AFP | Seoul

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Son Heung-min blamed South Korea’s shoddy pitches for their 2026 World Cup qualifying struggles after a 1-1 draw with Jordan left them sweating on an automatic place at the tournament.

The Koreans were held at home for a second game in a row on Tuesday after also drawing with Oman last week and hold a precarious lead at the top of Asian qualifying Group B with an away trip to third-placed Iraq still to come.

South Korea’s two qualifiers in March were moved away from Seoul because of the capital stadium’s poor pitch but skipper Son said the turf was still below par and took aim at his country’s football administra - tors.