S. Korea holds scoreless draw with Norway

Ahn Junghwan attempts tackle.(yonhap)

South Korea's national football team was held to a scoreless draw with Norway in an exhibition match in Oslo on Thursday.

The match showed exactly what the South's team has to prepare for in the remaining days before the World Cup finals open June 9 in Germany.

The team looked to mend persistent holes on both sides of the defensive and offensive line with 12 days to go to their opener against African newcomer Togo.

The Scandinavian team threatened the South's defenders with physical presence and superb ball control.

The match allowed the South Korean team to test the waters of physically dominating European football before it meets France and Switzerland in Group G of the tournament.

Key players Park Ji-sung of Manchester United, Lee Eul-yong of Turkey's Trabzonspor, domestic MVP Lee Chun-soo and young striker Park Chu-young missed the appearance with previous minor injuries.

They will return to Glasgow, Scotland, late in the day. They are to have a last exhibition match with Ghana, one of 32 finalists in the major tournament, in Edinburgh on Sunday.

The squad started its European training session last Saturday to acclimate to the European time zone and is scheduled to arrive in Cologne, Germany, on June 6.

OSLO, Norway, June 1 (Yonhap)