Preview: South Korea vs Uzbekistan - prediction, team news, lineups

South Korea continue life under interim manager Robert Moreno when they welcome Uzbekistan to Daejeon World Cup Stadium on Tuesday, with both sides preparing for their final outing before the return of club football.

The hosts have won one, drawn one and lost one of their three matches under their new boss during this international break, while the White Wolves have recorded comfortable victories over Iran and Syria in recent weeks.

Match preview

South Korea parted ways with manager Hong Myung-bo following their group-stage exit at the 2026 FIFA World Cup earlier this summer, bringing an end to his second spell in charge after less than two years at the helm.

The Tigers of Asia began their World Cup campaign with a 2-1 comeback victory over the Czech Republic, their first opening-game win since 2010, before suffering 1-0 defeats to Mexico and South Africa, with the decision to leave captain and joint top scorer Son Heung-min out of the side leaving many perplexed.

The Korea Football Association have since appointed Spanish boss Moreno on an interim basis, with his contract covering six matches in the dugout and running until November 27, 2026.

Three of those six fixtures have already been played, with South Korea beating Ecuador 3-0 thanks to second-half goals from Hyeon-gyu Oh, Son and Dong-gyeong Lee to claim their first win since June.

A heavy 4-1 defeat to Uruguay followed before a goalless draw with another South American opponent, Venezuela, on Friday, meaning South Korea have now experienced every possible result under their new manager.

As for the visitors, they are currently led by Italian legend Fabio Cannavaro, who will reach the one-year anniversary of his appointment as Uzbekistan manager on the same day as this friendly.

Cannavaro, who made 136 appearances for his country, has overseen five wins, two draws and six defeats across his 13 matches in charge of the White Wolves.

Like their opponents, Uzbekistan were eliminated from the World Cup after defeats to Colombia, Portugal and DR Congo left them bottom of Group K with just two goals scored and 11 conceded.

More recently, though, Cannavaro's side have enjoyed an impressive international break, beating Iran and Syria to score seven goals across their last two matches while conceding just twice.

Those victories point to clear signs of improvement, although conceding in both matches means Uzbekistan have now failed to keep a clean sheet in each of their last seven games.

The sides meet on Tuesday night with South Korea boasting the stronger head-to-head record, having avoided defeat in each of their previous nine meetings with Uzbekistan.

South Korea International Friendlies form:

South Korea form (all competitions):

Uzbekistan International Friendlies form:

Uzbekistan form (all competitions):

Team News

Both sides have rotated their squads heavily during this international break and can enter their final match without any further injuries having been sustained.

Former Tottenham Hotspur forward Son is one goal away from becoming South Korea's outright top scorer and is expected to captain the side once again as he looks to score his 59th goal for his country in his 151st appearance for the national team.

Moreno is expected to retain the 4-4-2 formation he has used in each of his three matches in charge, with Song Bum-kuen potentially continuing in goal after replacing Kim Seung-gyu last time out.

The visitors, meanwhile, will be looking to make it three consecutive victories for the first time under Cannavaro when they travel to East Asia.

Manchester City defender Abdukodir Khusanov is expected to retain his place in a back four, while captain Eldor Shomurodov could return to the starting side after beginning their latest victory on the bench.

Goalkeeper Abduvokhid Nematov is also expected to remain between the sticks despite scoring an own goal in the third minute of stoppage time last time out.

South Korea possible starting lineup:

Song; Seol, H. Lee, Min-jae, Cho; K. Lee, Park, In-beom, Kim; Oh, Son

Uzbekistan possible starting lineup:

Nematov; Karimov, Khusanov, Urozov, Mahamadjonov; Khamrobekov, Mozgovoy; Amanov, Esanov, Fayzullaev; Norchaev

We say: South Korea 1-1 Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan head into this contest in good form, but they face a South Korea side determined to end the international break on a positive note after two disappointing results in their last two matches.

We expect a closely contested encounter in Daejeon, with the two sides ultimately cancelling each other out and sharing the spoils.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.