Preview: South Korea vs. Egypt - prediction, team news, lineups

South Korea and Egypt will square off in an international friendly in Seoul on Tuesday.

The hosts have already welcomed Brazil, Paraguay and Chile in this round of fixtures, while the Pharaohs make the trip to Asia on the back of a pair of Africa Cup of Nations Qualifiers.

Match preview

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After a triumphant World Cup Qualifying campaign, in which they booked their place in the Qatar competition with a second-placed finish in their third-round group having amassed 23 points and seven wins from 10 games, South Korea headed into a run of friendlies on home soil in June.

The Tigers of Asia began with a tough test against Brazil, and they were comfortably beaten 5-1, with Hwang Ui-jo's first-half equaliser eventually being inconsequential, before they took on Chile in Daejeon.

Paulo Bento's men fared far better in that contest, as Hwang Hee-chan and Son Heung-min got on the scoresheet in a 2-0 triumph.

They most recently took on Paraguay, and, after going 2-0 down due to a Miguel Almiron brace, they were eventually able to salvage a 2-2 draw as Son Heung-min scored from a free kick before Jung Woo-young netted an equaliser in injury time at the end of the encounter.

Now heading into their final friendly before the upcoming East Asian Football Championship and the commencement of the World Cup, the Tigers of Asia will aim to make a return to winning ways against Egypt and build some confidence in the camp.

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Egypt, meanwhile, will head into their first International Friendly of the calendar year on the back of a relatively tough run, having firstly fallen short of reaching the World Cup as they lost in a penalty shootout after a two-legged playoff tie against Senegal, who also beat them in the Africa Cup of Nations final.

Following the departure of former manager Carlos Queiroz, the Pharaohs then began qualifying for the latest iteration of the continental competition at the beginning of June, and they quickly put their first points on the board with a 1-0 win over Guinea as Mostafa Mohamed hit the only goal of the same in the final five minutes.

Looking to make it a perfect start, they took on Ethiopia in the second round of games last time out but were unable to add to their tally, as goals from Dawa Hotessa and Shemeles Bekele condemned them to a surprise 2-0 defeat in Malawi.

Now under the management of Ehab Galal and wounded from their recent misfortunes, the African giants will aim to rebound with a victory when they make the trip to South Korea.

Team News

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South Korea will be led by talismanic Tottenham Hotspur winger Son Heung-min, who scored his 33rd international goal with an eye-catching free-kick against Paraguay last time out.

Hwang Ui-jo should again spearhead the front line, while Wolverhampton Wanderers' Hwang Hee-chan is not in the squad for the final game.

Kim Young-gwon will continue to offer plenty of experience in the back four with Jeong Seung-hyun again set to be given the nod alongside the 32-year-old.

Egypt star man and captain Mo Salah, who has netted 47 goals in 84 caps for his nation, could again miss out on Tuesday, after he was absent for the Ethiopia match due to a strain.

Galatasaray's Mostafa Mohammed should again take on more attacking responsibility in his absence, with Zizo and Omar Marmoush likely keeping their places on the wings.

Midfielder Mohamed Elneny and winger Trezeguet were also ruled out of last week's last qualifier due to injuries, and the Pharaohs could again also be missing the pair.

South Korea possible starting lineup:

Cho; M Kim, Jeong, Y Kim, J Kim; I Hwang, Paik, Na; Son, U Hwang, Kwon

Egypt possible starting lineup:

Gabal; Gaber, Alaa, Hamdy, Ashraf; Ashour, Al-Sulaya, Magdy; Marmoush, Mohamed, Zizo

We say: South Korea 2-1 Egypt

Given the notable absences in Egypt's squad, we back the Tigers of Asia to pick up a narrow victory on home soil.

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