#3 1966 Group stage match: North Korea 1-0 Italy
Pak Doo-ik – is perhaps the most infamous name registered in the bitter memory of every Italian soccer fan. Why? Well, let me explain.
North Korea had gone into the 1966 World Cup in England as the only Asian side. Things didn’t look good for them as they were drawn in a difficult group with the likes of the Soviet Union, Chile and Italy. Predictably, they lost 3-0 to the Soviet Union and went on to draw against Chile in the following match.
Equation before them was pretty clear. They had to beat the mighty Azzurri to qualify for the quarterfinal and to everyone’s surprise, that’s what they did. Skipper Doo-ik’s 42-minute strike turned out to be the difference between the sides as Italy was ousted from the World Cup.