"My trophy is buried in Lee Kang-in → Son Heung-min." Seol Young-woo's antics → his first goal aspirations are surprisingly revealed...Hong Myung-bo's first training as a whole team, overcoming the heat

"My trophy is buried in Lee Kang-in → Son Heung-min." Seol Young-woo's antics → his first goal aspirations are surprisingly revealed...Hong Myung-bo's first training as a whole team, overcoming the heat

Blog Article

Ahead of the showdown, Hong Myung-bo began training to adapt to Iraq as a whole.

The Korean national team had its first training session for about an hour and a half at Al Peja Stadium in Basra from 3 a.m. on Tuesday (Korea time). Coach Hong Myung-bo opened the session with customized physical training, divided into three groups depending on the time and duration of players' participation in matches. Following the coordination training, the team also conducted tactical training by playing small side games of offensive and defensive positions.

"The coaching staff arrived an hour early for the training program based on the Iraq war and completed preparations for the training site, and even though it was late at night, the team focused on training in a positive atmosphere," an official from the A team said. "Especially in tactical training, the task of selecting a suitable player for the Iraq match began with the first training."

South Korea will play 9th Group B match against Iraq at 3:15 a.m. on the 6th at Basra International Stadium in the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup. Lee Kang-in, who shared the first-ever treble myth of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), including the European Champions League, joined the team for the last time on the 3rd and became a complete group.

Adaptation to the local area is the key. Basra is hot and humid with temperatures of 45 degrees Celsius during the day and 35 degrees Celsius during the evening. However, this must also be overcome.

"It's time for the players to come up with results," said Seol from Zvezda. "It's not an easy environment for all the players. As soon as we arrived at the airport, it was very humid and hot. Many players have played away matches in the Middle East, but they always had tough matches. We have to make the plays we want to make and bring good results."

He also revealed his goal ambition in a surprise move. "I have assists but no goals in the national team. The first thing to do is to bring results, but I think it will be great if this game is won by scoring goals."

Seol moved from Ulsan HD to Serbia's Zvezda last summer. During his debut season in Europe, he displayed outstanding performance and achieved "double (two gold medals)". As a key player, Seol played a key role in Zvezda's tactics by playing fullback from left to right. Zvezda won the Serbian Super Liga and the Serbian Cup.

Overall, he said, "I gained confidence as I bumped into good players rather than big changes or superior skills. There is no such thing as suddenly becoming a better position player in the national team. When I come to the national team, I always have my main brothers. To play my role consistently is to do my part," he stressed.

"He was the oldest in the number of games among the sidebacks ever since he was called up. He also feels responsible. He wants to quietly support each other," he said. "He was always in the middle of the season when he was called up. It was a challenging environment due to long flying distance, jet lag, and other factors. This time, he came in first and took a rest, which made him feel clearer than usual. I feel great. I feel really good."

Son Heung-min won his first professional title since his debut at the top of the Europa League. "The older brothers who lifted the trophy talked about 'congratulations' to each other. Kangin and Heungmin won such a big competition that mine was buried. It's too bad," he said with a smile. "But I feel confident that I can go to a better league or competition to lift the trophy. I feel proud as a Korean. I thought he was cool because he shone in Korea." 메이저놀이터

Lee Tae-seok (Pohang), who has established himself as the future of Korean soccer sideback, said, "I'm equally nervous this time. I have a lot of weight for the national team's position. "I have extreme pressure, but I have to overcome the pressure to be able to join the team. I came here as a beginner," he said. "Although it is really hot, I think about taking care of my body and mental aspects as well. I have to pay more attention to my management. I have to win this game somehow. That is how I can win the ticket to the World Cup. I am focusing on this part."