Director Hong Myung-bo's unusual 2 p.m. press conference...KFA Overseas Players Check Until The Last Time
Aug 25, 2025
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Hong Myung-bo, head coach of the South Korean national football team, announced the list of the A-team to play in two consecutive A matches in September at 2 p.m. on the 25th at the Seoul Shinmun-ro Football Center. Korea will play two warm-up matches against the U.S. (6 a.m. on September 7) and Mexico (10 a.m. on September 10).
Hong Myung-bo will gather again after the East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Championship (East Asian Cup) held in Korea in July. However, the East Asian Cup was not held during the International Football Federation (FIFA) A match period, so overseas teams could not be selected. Only players playing in the K-League and the J-League played in the competition. It is the first time in three months that Hong Myung-bo will call up players playing on European and foreign stages since the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup held in June.
If you look at the 26 leagues that will go on the U.S. expedition, there are 11 players who play in Europe. He is active in various places, including the K League (8 players), the J League (2), the U.S. (2), and the Middle East (1). As most of the 26 players played overseas, coach Hong and staff had to check the players fiercely until the day the list was announced. In the meantime, the list was announced at 11 a.m., but this time, the schedule was changed to 2 p.m.
An official from the Korea Football Association (KFA) said, `There are many players who play abroad. The national team coaching staff checks the players' games until dawn. We are trying to respond quickly to variables such as injuries. I understand that he also had a video meeting with coach Joao, who is inspecting overseas waves in Europe. So we adjusted the time for the official press conference", he explained. In fact, Jens Kastrov (Mönchengladbach) played in the early morning of the 25th. He was substituted in the 38th minute of the second half in the opening match of the German Bundesliga against Hamburg in the 2025-2026 season at home.
Coach Hong said, `We haven't checked all the players during this off-season. However, coach João and coach Thiago went to see the matches of European players such as the German Bundesliga and the English Premier League (EPL) in person to check and select them. I think this is a very important issue in the future. I think the experience of playing a lot of games is especially important in the finals in June next year. Of course, I'll go out to Europe and keep checking, but I think at some point there will be a new way (to manage the players). For now, the only way is to communicate and check steadily, and the best way is for us to go and observe it."
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
