Won Doo-jae and Hong Myung-bo's midfield worries were dispelled with perfect development and defense
Jun 10, 2025
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Coach Hong appointed Park Yong-woo (Al Ain), who he was with during the Ulsan period. Park Yong-woo was not bad in terms of development, but his defense was a problem. It didn't protect the four-bag at all. His defensive ability in the midfield soon led to a loss. After entering the third qualifying round, Hong Myung-bo had only three clean sheets in the nine games he played. He lost points in five consecutive games until the Iraq match on the 6th, when he won 2-0.
Coach Hong, who prefers defensive midfielders with good sizes, selected three defensive midfielders ahead of the A-match in June. He chose Park Yong-woo, Won Doo-jae (Corpacan), who has recently been active in the Middle East, and Park Jin-seop, who is showing the best form in Jeonbuk.
In the match against Iraq on the 6th, Park consistently put forward Park Yong-woo. However, it did not meet expectations. Even though the opponent enjoyed a numerical advantage after being sent off, he failed to score in the first half. Coach Hong excluded Park Yong-woo and put Kim Jin-kyu (Jeonbuk) at the start of the second half. The water opened up. Kim Jin-kyu and Oh Hyun-kyu (Henk) scored consecutive goals.
Coach Hong chose a major change in the final Group B match against Kuwait in the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup at Seoul World Cup Stadium on the 10th. While Hwang In-beom remained the same, he used Won Doo-jae as a partner.
The result was a huge success. The beans showed a stable appearance from time to time. In development, he was no less than Park Yong-woo, and his defense was better. When the ball came in, he was the first to compete with the opponent. His positioning also stood out. He also exerted his power in set-piece situations. He didn't score, but he hit his head several times in corner and free-kick situations.
Coffee beans were a resource that former coach Paulo Bento highly valued. He was a key resource of the U-23 national team led by head coach Kim Hak-beom, and has not grown as much as expected since then. Especially when he comes to the national team, he has become smaller. He didn't play with confidence. This day was different. South Korea defeated Kuwait 4-0 due to Won Doo-jae's performance. Hong Myung-bo, who confirmed his trip to North Korea and China with a 2-0 win in the ninth away game against Iraq, passed the group stage with the victory and no loss. It is the third time that Korean soccer has entered the World Cup undefeated since the 1990 Italian Games and the 2010 South African Games.
The match against Kuwait was a meaningful game in that it prepared a thread to blow away the worries of the midfield.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
