Korean fans have added great colour (Allsport).

By Jason Hughes, PA International, Yokohama

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You can rest assured that football has never, ever seen anything quite like it.

Eighteen days ago South Korea were still looking for their first win at a World Cup finals, now they are one of the four best teams in the world.

Poland, Portugal, Italy and Spain have all fallen under the force of the seemingly unstoppable red machine.

But their remarkable performances on the pitch tell only half of the story of what has been going on in this little corner of Asia.

When Guus Hiddink's men come out to play on the pitch, four million Koreans - half the population of London - now come out to watch on the streets.

A sea of red from Seoul to Seogwipo, they gather to worship their heroes at specially-erected giant screens around the country.

When their adventure started on June 4, they arrived more in hope than expectation.

South Korea's World Cup finals record, dating back to a 9-0 defeat by Hungary in 1954, read: played 14, won 0, drawn four, lost 10.

Still though, the greatest footballing show on earth had come to town and they wanted to enjoy it - they just did not expect their team to be staying at the party until the end.

But while England discussed David Beckham's foot and Sven's dalliance with Ulrika, Hiddink was plotting to turn a bunch of unknowns into world beaters.

The Dutchman's gargantuan task may have started when he took the job in January last year, but it was only in the last four months that he put his masterplan into top gear.

To put the turnaround in perspective, they played six games in the first two months of the year and failed to register a single win against opposition that included Cuba and Canada.

But by now Hiddink had begun working with the players daily, passing on the experience garnered from spells at Real Madrid, Valencia, PSV Eindhoven and while in charge of Holland.

"It has been tough for them but they have never given up and with this big effort they have got their rewards," the Dutchman said after today's dramatic win over Spain.

The scenes of pure delirium that greeted captain Hong Myung-bo's winning strike in the penalty shoot-out would have been unimaginable when they took to the field against Poland in Busan on June 4.

But they had already given glimpses of what they were capable of, thrashing Scotland, drawing against England and only losing to defending champions France following a late goal in the build-up.

At the time, the promising performances were put down to the fact the neither the English nor the French were going full out with the tournament just around the corner.

In hindsight, it seems it was the Koreans who were holding back.

When they beat Poland in the Group D opener, apart from the statistic of it being their first finals win, it almost went unnoticed in the wake of Senegal's' shock victory over France.

After a draw against the United States next, everyone was confident that the world order of football would be restored when they faced Portugal in their final group game.

Although Korea were sitting in pole position, the Portuguese had hit top form by hammering Poland 4-0.

It was nice when it lasted, but the fairytale was about to end - except nobody told the Korean players.

Park Ji-sung's expertly-taken goal clinched a 1-0 victory as Portugal fell apart, losing the disgraced Joao Pinto and Beto following red cards.

Italy awaited in the second round, now this would definitely be the end.

Led by the wily old fox Giovanni Trapattoni, the three-time World Cup-winners were bound to prove too strong.

But the fairytale went on.

One-nil down with two minutes remaining, striker Seol Ki-hyeon equalised to take the game into extra-time.

The drama continued with Azzurri superstar Francesco Totti sent off after being shown a second yellow card for diving.

Then with three minutes on the clock, golden boy Ahn Jung-hwan scored the golden goal to repeat the 1966 giant-killing feat of North Korea over the same opposition.

By now, Hiddink's boys had proved to be tactically astute, technically brilliant and have the stamina of a thoroughbred.

Decisions may have gone in their favour along the way, but no-one should begrudge their achievements.

Looking at the team lists before their games with Spain and Italy makes interesting reading.

On one side are the names of players from Real Madrid, Juventus, Inter Milan and on the other are teams like the Suwon Bluewings and Pohang Steelers.

How Hiddink has taken South Korea to the semi-finals of a World Cup is astounding.

Things like this didn't even happen in Roy of the Rovers so they shouldn't happen in real life - but they have.

And who is to say that the adventure cannot go on yet further - to Yokohama on June 30.