It is said that Korean Central Television (KCTV), the state-run TV channel in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), made a rare and bold decision - to show live the World Cup match between the DPRK and Portugal.

Now, the decision-makers must be regretting that, having seen their goalkeeper Ri Myong Guk going back to his net to pick out the ball seven times.

The Koreans picked the wrong moment to allow their people to see a bit more of the outside world after their team gave mighty Brazil a hard time in the opening match.

It was supposed to be a moment of glory for the Koreans who qualified for the World Cup finals for the second time after 44 years. But it ended up a 7-0 shameful loss that sent them home. The last time the two teams met, Portugal rallied from a three-goal deficit to win 5-3 in the 1966 World Cup quarterfinals.

Seconds after the completion of the game, the TV commentator said: "The Portuguese won the game and now have four points. We are ending our live broadcast now."

Cristiano Ronaldo, who scored his first goal of the tournament said, it was not easy to score seven goals in a match.

The reasons for the blowout are obvious. The DPRK overestimated themselves while underestimating their opponents. They picked the wrong attacking strategy, showing their lack of thorough knowledge at the true level of international soccer; not a big surprise for a comparatively secluded country.

Just as DPRK coach Kim Jong-hun said, they tactically fell apart and couldn't block attacks by the Portuguese.

The team's "Rooney", star forward Jong Tae-se, who moved many by wiping away tears after listening to his country's national anthem in the match against Brazil, dropped to his knees as the game ended and later apologized to his nation for failing to fulfill its World Cup hopes.

A third generation of the Republic of Korea (ROK) who was born in Japan and later chose to trade his ROK citizenship for a DPRK passport, Jong is set to continue his career with his Japanese club, Kawasaki, but his teammates may face a strong backlash from the administrators after returning home for not employing the right strategy and conceding a lot of goals.

The DPRK players were feted as heroes when they returned home last year after qualifying for the World Cup; not so much now.

What China may learn from the 7-0 hammering is that the DPRK's way of soccer development cannot be copied. We must follow the advanced trend of international soccer while properly handling our domestic league. While we can adopt the Koreans' fighting spirit and psychologies, we should also learn the soccer fundamentals, the running of professional leagues and the tactical styles of the European and South American soccer power nations.

Then we will have a chance to narrow the gap with our neighbors and possibly the rest of the world.