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| photo courtesy of the Korea Football Association |
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| photo courtesy of the Korea Football Association |
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| photo courtesy of the Korea Football Association |
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Son Heung-min (LA FC), who is home to the U.S., scored his 52nd A match. I played the best 45 minutes, even adding help. Hong Myung-bo is off to a good start in the warm-up match for 'post-Asian'.
South Korea finished with a 2-0 lead in the first half with consecutive goals by Son Heung-min and Lee Dong-kyung (Kim Chun) in a friendly match against the U.S. at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey on the 7th. Son Heung-min, who moved to the U.S. Major League Soccer (MLS) stage last month, is a member of LA FC and will call up an A-match for the first time.
In the 18th minute of the first half, he was praised as "as expected". He received a through pass from the left side of the penalty area where Lee Jae-sung broke down the back space of the defense. The angle was narrow, but he scored with a sensational left-footed shot. It is the first time in 10 months that Son Heung-min has scored a goal in the A-match since the match against Palestine (1-1 draw) in November 2024.
In July last year, the era of director Hong Myung-bo has re-opened for the first time in 10 years. He has not been able to leave Asia due to the World Cup qualifying round. Only now that he has made it to the World Cup finals for the 11th time in a row has the path to 'post-Asian' opened.
The U.S. is ranked 15th in the FIFA rankings, eight places above South Korea, which is ranked 23rd. But it's not someone to be afraid of. The two teams' power is tight, so rehearsals are perfect. Coach Hong also said, `It is a very important game to enter the World Cup system now. Results are important, but we have to experiment with which players will be competitive next June. It's a good partner to deal with. I'll do my best to prepare" he said.
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| 사진=KFA SNS 캡처 |
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| photo courtesy of the Korea Football Association |
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The era of 'nails' has rekindled. Hong operated the 3-4-2-1 system. With Son Heung-min on the one-top, Lee Dong-kyung and Lee Jae-sung (Mines) were located on the side. Baek Seung-ho (Birmingham City) and Kim Jin-kyu (Jeonbuk) were the defensive midfielders, while Lee Tae-seok (Austria Vienna) and Seol Young-woo (Zvezda) played left and right wingbacks. The three-back consisted of Kim Joo-sung (Hiroshima), Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich), and Lee Han-beom (Mit Willan). Cho Hyun-woo (Ulsan) defended the goal.
Son's main position was the left winger in the Hong Myung-bo team. We need a decisive shot in the World Cup finals after all. There is no other resource with the ability to make decisions like Son Heung-min. Son Heung-min has been used as a 'one-top' by LA FC all the time. It was expected to test Son Heung-min 'Striker', and it bore fruit from the first half.
Son Heung-min showed off his perfect match with Lee Jae-sung, who was born in 1992. Lee Jae-sung caught the flow by getting a foul in the second minute of the first half.
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| photo courtesy of the Korea Football Association |
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The first three-back was also on the stage after the European leagues joined. Kim Min-jae's return was a thousand troops. He has disappeared from the A national team since November last year. The call-up of the A match in June following March was also failed due to the controversy over injuries such as sore throat and back pain as well as Achilles tendon inflammation. After 10 months, he wore the national flag and went back on the ground. He silenced the U.S. defense penetrating the back with fast speed. In the eighth minute of the first half, he complained of ankle pain, but fortunately, it was not a major injury.
Lee Dong-kyung was given an opportunity while Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain) was excluded from the starting lineup due to a minor ankle injury. He scored his first shot in the 15th minute of the first half and then scored his second goal in the 43rd minute of the first half.
Son Heung-min, who received Kim Jin-kyu's pass, created an opportunity with a one-two pass with Lee Jae-sung. Lee Dong-kyung, who received Son Heung-min's pass, shook the net with a picturesque 'back foot'. It was a fantastic goal scene.
Jens Kastrov, whose father is German and mother is Korean, started from the bench for now. He is the first member of the mixed-race national team to be born abroad in the history of Korean soccer. Hong plans to experiment with 'Fighter Style' castrope in the defensive midfielder position.
In the U.S., Mauricio Pochettino, who made Son Heung-min of the day, is at the helm. He recruited Son Heung-min when he was the head coach of Tottenham. I'm looking forward to the second half of the Republic of Korea.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
