Jürgen Klinsmann’s (GER) South Korea national soccer team (hereafter Klinsmann’s) June A match call-up has been announced. The main players, including captain Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur) and key midfielder Lee Kang-in (Mallorca), have been named.
Klinsmann held a press conference at a soccer hall in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the morning of June 5 to announce the June A match roster. Led by captain Son Heung-min, Lee Kang-in, Hwang In-beom (Olympiacos), and Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton Wanderers), who have consistently played a key role, were selected.
This call-up is truly the first of the Klinsmann era. Back in March, Klinsmann hadn’t had much time to observe the players since his arrival, and as a way of celebrating the round of 16, he named the same squad from the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
This month’s roster, on the other hand, was handpicked by Klinsmann after consulting with the coaching staff. In particular, Klinsmann has been traveling to K League games to observe players, and in April, he traveled to Europe to inspect the European squad. The coaching staff also continued to observe the players in Europe.
As a result, Park Yong-woo (Ulsan Hyundai),먹튀검증 Ahn Hyun-beom (Jeju United), and Hong Hyun-seok (Henk) were the surprise additions to the squad. They are all first-time call-ups to the A team. Lee In-jong-kyu (Ulsan), who had hoped to win the Taegeuk mark after a stellar season in which he scored the most goals (eight) in the K League 1 this season, was disappointed. Longtime players Kwon Chang-hoon (Gimcheon Sangmu) and Jung Woo-young (Alsad) were also left out.
Core defender Kim Min-jae (Napoli), who won a gold medal at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta-Palembang, was excluded as he was transferred to the arts and sports staff and is scheduled to enter the training center on March 15 for three weeks of basic military training. Kim Young-kwon (Ulsan), who has consistently formed a center-back duo with him, was also not called up after being sidelined with a thigh muscle injury last month.
Meanwhile, Klinsmann will face Peru at the Busan Asiad Stadium on Sept. 16, followed by a second trial against El Salvador at the Daejeon World Cup Stadium four days later. It will be interesting to see if Klinsmann, who is winless since taking over, can get his first win.