There is not enough time to solve all the problems perfectly.
The national soccer team, led by head coach Hwang Sun-hong, will play the second round of Asian qualifiers for the 2026 North and Central America World Cup against Thailand at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on the 21st. 업소알바
Hwang assumed the leadership after replacing former coach Jurgen Klinsmann. It is the first time for the A-team, and there are so many things to do. It is a tight schedule to prepare for the upcoming match. The team convened in Goyang on Sunday. Only 17 players participated in the training without major players from European leagues, including Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur), Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) and Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain). Practical training sessions will take place on Wednesday and Tuesday, for just two days.
There has been a change in the national squad. Unlike Klinsmann, who only selected players who Hwang had been with at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year, which he had observed before, Hwang has recruited a large number of players. Among the players who participated at the AFC Asian Cup, only 14 survived. Nine of the 23 have newly joined the team. In particular, changes are felt in the defensive midfielder, which is the backbone of the team. As such, Hwang needs more time to work with the team, but realistic time is not long.
Thailand, the opponent team, is a powerhouse in Southeast Asia. It is far lower than Korea, which is ranking 22nd at 101st in the FIFA rankings, but it is not easy to see. Korea already had the experience of having a draw with Malaysia, which is much lower than Thailand at the Asian Cup. As the power gap between Asian countries has narrowed, a victory cannot be guaranteed without 100 percent.
“This is one of the things that I am most concerned about. Ordering a lot of things can get complicated. I will prepare as simple as possible and intensively as possible,” Hwang said. Rather than ordering a lot of things from the players, he plans to prepare an operation that he can digest in a short period of time.
The problem is that coach Hwang cannot focus only on the game. The national team suffered from the collision between captain Son Heung-min and ace Lee Kang-in during the Asian Cup. Lee Kang-in personally went to London, England, to apologize, and Son Heung-min accepted it and ended, but it is necessary to reorganize the atmosphere as they gather again for the first time since the incident. From the standpoint of the head coach, Hwang, we need to pay more attention to things outside the game.
“When all the players get together, I plan to have a lot of discussions,” Hwang said. “What I say is important, but I want to listen to the players first. I try to find a way through dialogue. I have a consensus that I have to solve a problem, so I have to think about a good way. I don’t have much time because of the games.”
Even Hwang’s original U-23 team is currently playing at the invitation of the West Asian Football Confederation (WAFF) in Amman, Saudi Arabia. Hwang will play his first match against Thailand on Tuesday. Hwang should pay attention to the game remotely. As expected, he is concerned about whether Hwang will be overloaded.