As he points out, all their Group D opponents, Poland, Portugal and the United States, stand above them in the Fifa rankings. And, as no Korean needs reminding, they have never won in the finals, in 14 attempts spread over five tournaments.But he is not immune to the national mood and spoke yesterday of South Korea reaching the second phase for the first time, thereby avoiding the indignity of being the first host nation not to do so. “When I took over 18 months ago, I thought it would be very difficult to make the last 16 But the team has come a long way lately. Our chances are much greater now.”The only Korean victory in the World Cup finals remains the North’s triumph over Italy at Middlesbrough in 1966, a Maoist miracle which ensured that, in the wider world, the scorer Pak Doo-Ik is still the best-known player from the Peninsula. The South’s introduction to the tournament 12 years earlier had been a shattering 9-0 defeat by Hungary hours after they arrived in Switzerland in a state of exhaustion after a 60-hour trek by train, sea and air.Despite their subsequent emergence as a power within Asia – they launched the continent’s first professional league in 1983 – a 5-0 drubbing (that scoreline again) by Hiddink’s Dutch side in 1998 led many to question whether anything had been learned in four consecutive visits to the finals.

He remembered them as “disorganised, slow and lacking tactical awareness”.South Korea’s football had always been insular. The Manchester United brand is conspicuous by its absence compared with Japan, while the K-League banned foreigners until recently. The realisation dawned that they needed a coach to instill a more worldly approach. Having ended his playing days with Washington Diplomats and San Jose Earthquakes before managing PSV Eindhoven, Real Madrid, Valencia, Fenerbahce and the Netherlands, Hiddink was a shrewd choice.There was no overnight transformation; he has sifted through nearly 60 players. Gradually, though, they became more “European” (exemplified on a superficial level by a profusion of bottle blonds and redheads in the squad), more willing to take initiative and less cautious for fear of making mistakes. They also adjusted to a fluid, Dutch-style 3-4-3 formation, learning to interchange positions and cover for a player breaking upfield.Running parallel to this crash course in the modern game was a “power training” programme run by Hiddink’s compatriot, Raimond Verheijen, that enhanced their stamina and upper-body strength. Berti Vogts, the Scotland manager, had charge of Germany when they beat South Korea 3-2 at USA 94 and he detected a major improvement when his new team were pummelled in Pusan last month.Likewise France’s coach, Roger Lemerre, who warned that South Korea could now match the top nations, physically and technically.

“When a team with their strength of spirit are at home,” he said, “they’re hard to beat.” Youri Djorkaeff gave the frontline perspective: “They’re not the same team as when we beat them 5-0. In 12 months the difference is amazing.”The testimony of Hiidink’s players is equally telling. Choi Yong-Soo said: “I confess I didn’t know how to play football before. All I had was a desire to play.” Kim Nam-Il added: “I’ve got a tough role, as a hunter for the opposition playmaker, so I’ve paid great attention.”There is still naivety in their play.