In a matchup of first versus worst in Group B of World Cup 2026 qualifying in Asia, Palestine will seek their first victory of the third round when they battle undefeated South Korea on Tuesday at Amman International Stadium in Jordan.
On matchday five of the qualification cycle, the Palestinians were narrowly beaten 1-0 by Oman, while the Taegeuk Warriors doubled Kuwait 3-1.
Match preview
© Imago
The third round of World Cup qualification has proven to be a challenging one for Palestine, who sit bottom of their group with two points after five fixtures.
Makram Daboub's men have competed hard, with two of their three losses in round three being by a single goal, while claiming a point in their previous home contest against Kuwait, thanks to an equaliser in stoppage time (2-2).
The Fedayeen are currently on a seven-match winless run in qualifying, failing to find the back of the net in five of those instances.
Four of their last five competitive fixtures as the home team have ended with Palestine earning at least a point, posting two clean sheets over that stretch.
They are winless in this round of qualifying when even or behind at the half, though two of their three goals have come in the opening 45 minutes.
On matchday one, they claimed perhaps the biggest result in the nation's history, as the 100th-seeded side, according to FIFA, held the 22nd-ranked Koreans to a 0-0 draw, the first time these two teams had met on the international stage.
© Imago
After five matchdays, South Korea appear poised to punch their ticket into the World Cup finals for an 11th consecutive occasion, winning four of their five matches in round three.
Hong Myung-bo has had a successful second spell as national team manager, with the 55-year-old yet to lose since his reappointment in July.
The man who scored two goals for the Koreans during the 1994 World Cup has re-invigorated this attack as this team have netted 11 goals in his five contests at the helm.
As things stand, South Korea sit five points clear of Iraq for an automatic place in the 2026 finals, with the Tigers of Asia winning four consecutive encounters.
The Koreans have been particularly sharp away from home, winning their last five qualifiers as the visitors by a combined margin of 18-2.
Their last defeat in World Cup qualifying occurred in March 2022, when the United Arab Emirates beat them 1-0 at Al-Maktoum Stadium.
Team News
© Imago
Palestine brought in six newcomers to their opening lineup on matchday five, Michel Termanini, Mohammed Khalil, Oday Kharoub, Ameed Mahajna, Ataa Jaber and Oday Dabbagh.
Mohammed Rashid is one appearance away from 50, while Mohammed Darweesh is two shy of achieving that same milestone with the national team.
We saw one new face in the South Korean starting 11 on Thursday as captain Son Heung-min replaced Bae Jun-ho in an attacking midfield role.
Son netted his 50th goal for his country the last time out, drawing level with Hwang Sun-hong for second all-time, with the other strikes coming courtesy of Oh Se-hun and Bae.
Palestine possible starting lineup:
Hamadeh; Al-Battat, Termanini, Saleh, Khalil; Kharoub, Rashid, Zeidan, Abu Warda; Dabbagh, Faraj
South Korea possible starting lineup:
Hyeon-woo; Young-woo, Yu-min, Min-jae, Tae-seok; In-beom, Yong-woo; Kang-in, Jae-sung, Heung-min; Se-hun
We say: Palestine 0-3 South Korea
At the moment, the Koreans are firing on all cylinders, whereas Palestine are struggling to find that winning edge, and we believe the latter will suffer a hard lesson on Tuesday.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joel Lefevre
Iran
Kyrgyzstan
North Korea
Qatar
UAE
Uzbekistan
Iraq
Jordan
Kuwait
Oman
Palestine
South Korea
Australia
Bahrain
China
Indonesia
Japan
Saudi Arabia
