For once, coach Jürgen Klinsmann might be in trouble.
The South Korean national soccer team, led by coach Jürgen Klinsmann, will host Vietnam (ranked 95th in the FIFA rankings) in an October A match at the Suwon World Cup Stadium at 8 p.m. on Sunday.
Team Klinsmann started October on a high note with a convincing 4-0 victory over Tunisia, the ‘Africa’s Black Knights’. But there’s no room for complacency. The team’s goal is to win the 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup. “We need to improve as a team if we want to bring home the Asian Cup trophy, which hasn’t been won since 1960. In times like these, it’s important to continue to face strong opponents and find ways to improve as a team.
However, our next opponent is Vietnam, a team with a vast difference in objective strength. Vietnam, ranked 95th in the FIFA rankings, have shown some promise since parting ways with their historic coach Park Hang-seo in January, with three straight wins over Hong Kong, Syria, and Palestine. However, their last two matches were 0-2 losses to China and Uzbekistan. That’s two bad losses against two countries that are weaker than South Korea.
Vietnam shouldn’t be counted out, but they are too weak to play at full strength, including key resources like Son Heung-min, Lee Kang-in, and Kim Min-jae. It’s a great opportunity for South Korea to practice how to break through a tight defense, but it’s also a test for Vietnam if they get an early goal and collapse.
That said, it’s important not to go out at full strength, and the current official schedule indicates that Vietnam will be the last test before the Asian Cup. It’s a tricky situation in many ways, as the team hasn’t even finalized its Plan A yet and may be forced to prepare a Plan B if the opponent is underpowered.
Klinsmann also has to worry about the fitness of his main players. Son Heung-min’s muscle situation is not good enough to keep him out of the match against Tunisia. Kim Min-jae was not 100% fit after his move to Munich, and he’s been put through the wringer. He’ll also have to deal with a crazy schedule when he returns, as his Munich center-back teammates are injured.
Lee Kang-in has just returned from the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games. He showed against Tunisia that he’s in top form, but he’s been plagued by nagging injuries this season and shouldn’t be counted out. Hwang Hee-chan is also prone to muscle injuries, so it’s hard to push him too hard. Hwang In-beom also felt uncomfortable while warming up against Tunisia.
The opponent is too weak to play at full strength, and this is the last trial match to identify the team’s problems. Even with a full strength squad, playing an exhibition game against Vietnam will not be easy to identify problems after the game.토토사이트
Meanwhile, neighboring Japan also recently traveled to Germany, this time to test their international competitiveness against North and Central American foe Canada. South Korea, on the other hand, faced Saudi Arabia on the road in Europe and Vietnam at home.