I changed everything except for the three captains, but only one shot, an unconventional experiment → a vain battle...Hong Myung-bo finished with 00 in the first half

Nov 18, 2025

I changed everything except for the three captains, but only one shot, an unconventional experiment → a vain battle...Hong Myung-bo finished with 00 in the first half
A warm-up match between Korea and Ghana at Seoul World Cup Stadium on the 18th. Son Heung-min is attacking. Sangam = Reporter Jung Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.11.18/



I changed everything except for the three captains, but only one shot, an unconventional experiment → a vain battle...Hong Myung-bo finished with 00 in the first half
A warm-up match between Korea and Ghana at Seoul World Cup Stadium on the 18th. Kana Irenki is attempting a mid-range shot. Sangam = Reporter Jung Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.11.18/
I changed everything except for the three captains, but only one shot, an unconventional experiment → a vain battle...Hong Myung-bo finished with 00 in the first half
A match warm-up match between South Korea and Ghana at Seoul World Cup Stadium on the 18th. Jens is catching his breath. Sangam = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.11.18/
It was shocking again. But there was no one who stood out.

South Korea finished the first half without scoring a goal in a friendly match against Africa's 'Kangho' Ghana, which is being held at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on the 18th. It's a series of experiments. A national team coach Hong Myung-bo changed eight of the best 11 players compared to the match against Bolivia on the 14th, except for Son Heung-min (LAFC), Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich), and Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), who are the "three leaders" of Korean soccer.

Hong brought up the 3-4-3 system. As predicted, Oh Hyun-kyu (Henk) was placed on the one-top. Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in were placed on the left and right sides. Son Heung-min, who has been at the top of the list since reaching the World Cup finals for 11 consecutive times, has been back on the side of Tottenham's main position.




In the midfield, Lee Tae-seok (Austria Vienna), Jens Kastrov (Mönchengladbach), Kwon Hyuk-kyu (Nant), and Seol Young-woo (Zvezda) lined up. Kim Min-jae, Park Jin-seop (Jeonbuk) and Cho Yoo-min (Sharja) breathed in the three-back. Song Bum-keun (Jeonbuk) defended the goal.

Jens Kastroff, the first foreign-born mixed-race national team member, wore the national flag for the first time in September. He had his second chance to start following a friendly (2-2 draw) against Mexico in the United States on September 10. Castrov played 45 minutes in the second half against Brazil, which was completely defeated 0-5 last month.

I changed everything except for the three captains, but only one shot, an unconventional experiment → a vain battle...Hong Myung-bo finished with 00 in the first half
A match warm-up match between South Korea and Ghana at Seoul World Cup Stadium on the 18th. Kwon Hyuk-kyu is trying to pass. Sangam = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.11.18/
I changed everything except for the three captains, but only one shot, an unconventional experiment → a vain battle...Hong Myung-bo finished with 00 in the first half
A match warm-up match between South Korea and Ghana at Seoul World Cup Stadium on the 18th. Oh Hyun-kyu is dissatisfied with the referee's decision. Sangam = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.11.18/
However, he failed to impress Hong. The fighting spirit was overflowing, but it lacked 2% of the connection between offense and defense due to frequent pass misses. Kwon Hyuk-kyu made his A-match debut. He left Scotland last summer and moved to France Ligue 1 F.C. Nantes. Kwon Hyuk-kyu was selected for the first time for the A national team 13 months ago in October last year, but he did not play in the game. He was positioned right in front of the three-back and was faithful to his defensive duties.

Since making his A-match debut at the East Asian Cup in July 2022, Song Bum-keun has only been on the bench. He made his first appearance in three years and four months. He shut out the first half without losing a point.

As Ghana weighed in on the defense, the number of attacking players was insufficient. Ghana tried to connect the first shot in the 6th minute of the first half when Christopher Bonsuba shook the defense line, but the defense cleared it first.

The Taeguk Warriors immediately fought back. However, in the 7th minute of the first half, Son Heung-min's cross fell into the goalkeeper's arms. There was little clue in the attack. After 30 minutes in the first half, Ghana's spirit, which had been breathless, came back to life. South Korea couldn't shoot properly as it hovered around.




The first shot came out only in the 41st minute of the first half. Kwon Hyuk-kyu connected Son Heung-min's corner kick with a header. But it was in front of the goalkeeper.

There are 45 minutes left in the second half. Changes in the midfield are inevitable. Coach Hong said the keyword for the two consecutive A matches in November was 'Results'. South Korea's FIFA ranking is 22nd and Ghana 73rd. However, South Korea is inferior to Ghana with three wins and four losses. The most recent match was the second group match of the 2022 Qatar World Cup. Cho Kyu-sung (Mit Willan) scored multiple goals and tried hard, but lost 2-3.

Korean soccer has recently been mired in two consecutive losses in Ghana.



This article was translated by Naver AI translator.