For South Korea, the 2010 World Cup qualification campaign is almost over and first place in the group guaranteed. There is still one act to be played out however and it promises to be an intriguing one. The final game takes place on Wednesday. South Korea have bagged the first of two automatic qualification spots which leaves one up for grabs. There are three teams that would very much like to take that second slot, third place is not the end of the world as it offers a play-off route to South Africa. Fourth equals nothing. The Taeguk Warriors will have a big say in just who gets what. At the moment, North Korea is in second with eleven points, above Saudi Arabia on goal difference while Iran is in fourth and just a point behind. But it really is anybody’s place. North Korea travels to Saudi Arabia for the last match while Iran comes to Seoul led by Afshin Ghotbi, a former assistant coach of the South Korean national team.

There must be something in the water in South Korea. Anybody who spends time on the coaching staff of the national team seems to spend the rest of their career doing pretty well for themselves. A Korean Football Association (KFA) official told me recently that the organization should start charging commission or finding fees. He has a point as it is not impossible that four teams at the 2010 World Cup could have former member of the South Korean coaching staff as their head coaches. Just take a look at the recent history. Guus Hiddink isn’t doing too badly for himself and is now preparing Chelsea for a UEFA Champions League semi-final and is also trying to guide the Russian national team to the 2010 World Cup.