“We have to compete fiercely because FC Seoul has a lot of good side-backs. I had some difficulties in the process of transferring, but if I don’t win the competition, I can’t make it to the national team. I want to be confident.”
Choi Jun is the next full-back of South Korean soccer. He was expected to be represented by age groups, and especially in the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland, where he played as the starting left-back, resulting in his first ever runner-up finish. Since then, he has garnered a lot of attention by winning a gold medal at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games.
Expectations are high. Currently, the position that needs generational change the most in the Korean national soccer team is the full-back position, and there is expectation that Choi Jun, who is displaying aggressive play, will occupy a single position. Now, he has to blossom into a professional player, too. He joined Ulsan HD in 2020 but was left for Gyeongnam due to competition with Seol Young-woo, Kim Tae-hwan, Chung Dong-ho and Park Chu-ho, and later moved to Seoul ahead of the 2024 season through Busan.
It is a challenge for Choi. Except for Ulsan in its early days as a pro, it is practically his first K-League 1 stage, and there are many national team-level fullbacks such as Kim Jin-ya, Lee Tae-seok and Lee Si-young in Seoul. In addition, Yoon Jong-kyu, who played at the Qatar World Cup, will return to the military after being discharged from the military in summer.
Choi, however, was confident. When this reporter met him in Kagoshima, Japan, Choi said, “I thought about moving to FC Seoul because I have many side-backs. I won a gold medal at the Asian Games, but would I be able to enjoy competition because Kim Jin-ya, Lee Si-young and Lee Tae-seok are here? I thought about this. However, people around me said, “I need to have a higher dream,” so I decided to move to the next team. That was a big opportunity for Choi to join the national team. They are fiercely competing with each other. With Jong-kyu coming in in summer, competition is fierce. If you don’t have confidence, you can’t play. My strength is that I can play on both the left and the right sides.”
[FC Seoul defender Choi Jun interview]
How are you adjusting to Seoul?
He is adapting well. It feels different from when he first went to Busan. He had many friends in Busan, but he does not have many peers in Seoul. Still, there is Young-wook who was with him at the U-20 World Cup, and Seo Joo-hwan is a friend. There are many younger friends in the team than I thought, so I think he is in the middle age. It is also difficult to treat younger members these days. I think I prefer when I am the youngest. (laughs)
Q: There is a shortage of fullbacks worldwide. You are expected to be the next fullback of Korean soccer. Why did you come to Seoul?
I came to think about fierce competition in the Asian Games, and I think there are all reasons why young fullbacks like me can’t make it to the national team. If our generation did better, it would have been a generational change, but it doesn’t seem to have changed because our seniors are better. I want to do better in that sense. 꽁머니
As FC Seoul has many side-backs, I thought about moving to a new club. Although I won a gold medal at the Asian Games, would I be able to enjoy competition because I have Kim Jin-ya, Lee Si-young and Lee Tae-seok? I thought about this. However, people around me said I should have a higher dream, so I decided to move to the club. That was a big opportunity because they said that if I don’t win, I will not be able to join the national team. They are fiercely competing. As Jong-kyu is coming in summer, competition is fierce. If you don’t have confidence, you can’t play. My strength is that I can play both sides.