Park Seung-ho came on as a substitute in the eighth minute of the second half against Honduras in the FIFA U-20 World Cup Argentina 2023 Group F match at Estadio Malvinas Argentinas in Mendoza, Argentina on June 26 at 6:00 a.m. ET.
Park Seung-ho scored the equalizer in the 스포츠토토 17th minute with the score at 1-2. Lee Seung-won sent in a corner kick, and Park cut in front of it and sent in a header. The ball was sucked into the corner of the far post.
But something worrying happened soon after. In the 19th minute of the second half, Park Seung-ho collapsed on the pitch all alone. He couldn’t continue and was taken off the field on a stretcher.
Tests revealed bad news. “Park Seung-ho, who was injured after scoring the equalizer against Honduras in the second match of the group stage, was examined by the radiology department of a local hospital and was diagnosed with a fracture of the fibula in his right ankle and damage to the triangular ligament,” his club Incheon United said on the 28th.
“The player will be sent home early to South Korea for further medical and surgical treatment in the near future, and unfortunately, we will not be able to see his face on the pitch for some time.”
Park Seung-ho will no longer be seen in action following his exit from the U-20 World Cup.
Park’s equalizer secured South Korea an early round of 16 berth. The U-20 World Cup is played in six groups, from A to F, with the first and second place finishers automatically qualifying for the round of 16, while the third place finishers in each group are the top four teams out of six. South Korea is in second place in Group F with four points after a 2-1 win over France and a 2-2 draw with Honduras.
Even if they lose to the Gambia, they can still secure at least third place in the group. With four points, Kim Eun-jung-ho has a better chance of finishing in the top four than third-place Slovakia U-20 in Group B (three points) and third-place Japan U-20 in Group C (three points). Japan U-20’s upset loss to Israel U-20 was decisive.