Brazil were held 0-0 at home by Bolivia, Colombia and Venezuela in the World Cup qualifiers, each time struggling against ultra-defensive teams, and are set to face more of the same against North Korea, the lowest ranked of the 32 finalists.
Few teams can have prepared so long for a game as the side from the hermit state, who have spent more than four months together in a training marathon which has taken them to Sri Lanka, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Mexico and Venezuela.
Their luggage was mislaid so they had to borrow Venezuela's all-white second strip.
With all but three of their players based at home, Korean coach Kim Jong-Hun has been free to organise his team's preparations without the hindrance of club commitments.
"They defend very well, create a lot of complications and are very fast on the counter-attacks," Paraguay's Gerardo Martino said after his team beat North Korea 1-0 in a friendly in Switzerland last month.
"Nobody talks about them but they play good football and physically are very fit. They have been in a training camp for six months maybe," added Sven-Goran Eriksson, whose Ivory Coast team are also in Group G.
"You don't see them getting tired. Even in the second half, they just go on," said the Swede.
"We expect to play against defensive opponents, which always causes difficulty, and because its the first game, the anxiety is very great," said midfielder Gilberto Silva.
"We're preparing for the cold and played Tanzania in unbearable heat," complained fullback Dani Alves.
