S. Korea to open football tournament against Mexico

South Korea will kick off its London Olympics football tournament on Thursday against Mexico in Newcastle.

St. James' Park will be the venue for the Group B opener at 2:30 p.m. local time, as South Korea seeks to win its first Olympic medal in football. Other nations in the group are Switzerland and Gabon.

It will be South Korea's first action at this year's Olympics, coming a day before the opening ceremony. The men's football tournament at Olympics often begins before the official start of the Games to fit in all matches for 16 teams in action.

This is South Korea's seventh straight Olympic appearance and ninth overall, but the country has gone beyond the first round only twice in its previous eight attempts.

This year's squad has already dealt with injuries to key players. Even before the roster of 18 was assembled, former team captain and defensive stalwart Hong Jeong-ho was ruled out of the Olympics with a knee injury.

Earlier this month, another defender, Jang Hyun-soo, went down with a knee injury of his own and was replaced. Then on Tuesday here, midfielder Han Kook-young was sent home after suffering a hairline fracture in his left foot.

Head coach Hong Myung-bo has expressed concerns about his defensive unit. But the team's depth up front won't likely keep him up at night.

Arsenal forward Park Chu-young was selected as a wild card -- or a player over the Olympic football age limit of 23 -- and the senior national team fixture is entering the Olympics having scored in each of the country's past two friendlies. Kim Bo-kyung, a crafty midfielder hailed as the heir apparent to former national team captain Park Ji-sung, will serve as the offensive sparkplug.

Kim is set to sign with Cardiff City in England's second division, and on the South Korean team, he's joined by others plying their trade in Europe. Koo Ja-cheol of Augsburg in Germany will be the central midfielder. Ji Dong-won of the English side Sunderland may come off the bench to provide a second-half boost.

Ki Sung-yueng, a Celtic midfielder in Scotland who's been linked to Liverpool in the English Premier League this summer, will handle more of the defensive duties in the middle.

If the defense has holes, the team has the reliable last line of defense in goalkeeper Jung Sung-ryong, the starting goalkeeper for the senior team.

Jung and Co. on defense will have to keep an eye on striker Marco Fabian, who has netted 13 goals in 13 matches for the Olympic team.

South Korea recently beat New Zealand 2-1 and then Senegal 3-0 in the buildup to London. Mexico, on the other hand, has fallen to Spain 1-0 and then to Japan 2-1 in its preparations.

These two losses came on the heels of Mexico's 1-0 blanking of Britain, and coach Hong said he believes the recent results have exposed Mexico's Achilles' heel.

"Mexico is strong on offense, and it's a well-prepared team with great individual talent," Hong said. "But we've confirmed their big holes on defense. It's crucial for us to capitalize on their weaknesses."

After Mexico, South Korea faces Switzerland in Coventry on Sunday and then Gabon in London next Wednesday.

The Olympic tournament features four groups of four nations.

The top two teams from those groups will make up the quarterfinals. (Yonhap News)