Two center backs who started the last two games will be absent. Coach Hwang Sun-hong said, “We have prepared preparations for now.”
South Korea’s under-23 national soccer team, led by head coach Hwang Sun-hong, will play the third Group B match of the 2024 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U23 Asian Cup against Japan at 4 p.m. on the 22nd (local time) at Jasim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Qatar.
Korea has already confirmed its advance to the quarterfinals and is about to play in a final match. The opponent is Japan, the “elderly rival.” In particular, the final ranking of the group will be determined through this match. Korea and Japan are accumulating two wins apiece. There is a reason why the final ranking is important. The top of Group B, which includes Korea, will face Indonesia, the second-ranked team in Group A, and if they are second-ranked, they will meet Qatar, the first-ranked team in Group A.
Indonesia has shown off its potential by beating Australia (1-0) and Jordan (4-1). But the more demanding team is definitely Qatar. Following the 2023 Asian Cup that took place in January, Qatar has many advantages as it plays this tournament at home. Despite overwhelming support from its home fans, there has been controversy over biased judging in Qatar’s favor. Coach Shin Tae-yong also expressed his anger over this after the first match between Indonesia and Qatar.
Japan must beat Japan in order to become No. 1 in the group. However, Korea is currently unable to fully display its capacity. More than anything else, the central defense is bleeding profusely. Captain Byun Joon-soo will be absent due to accumulated disciplinary action due to yellow cards each in the first and second rounds.
He left the tournament due to injury. After being substituted early in the second half of the match against China, he suffered a torn cruciate ligament, which forced him to drop out of the tournament. “He was diagnosed with a ruptured hamstring for about eight weeks. He is also out of the tournament during the tournament. However, he will stay with his players until the very end without returning to Korea first,” a KFA source said.
Now, the only available center-back resource for Hwang Sun-hong is Lee Jae-won. If you use four back as before, you need one more central defender. In the match against China, Cho Hyun-taek played the position immediately after the signing officer was removed. There is a possibility that Lee Kang-hee and other central midfielder resources will be deployed at the center back. Considering the 300 changes, there are more options. 룸알바
First of all, Hwang said he has prepared preparation measures. “I can’t elaborate on the tactics, but I have a plan. I will follow that plan,” Hwang said in an interview before the official training session at Qatar University’s training ground in Doha, Qatar on Wednesday. “These are things that can happen in tournaments. If something difficult like this happens again, I will follow it as soon as it happens.”