Vietnam are excited to meet ‘superstar’ Son Heung-min (31-Tottenham) as they take on South Korea in an exhibition match.
South Korea, coached by Jürgen Klinsmann (GER), will face Vietnam at 8 p.m. on Sunday at the Suwon World Cup Stadium. The Vietnamese are ranked 95th in the FIFA rankings and have a significant head-to-head advantage over South Korea with 2 wins, 5 draws and 17 losses. South Korea is also coming off a 4-0 victory over Tunisia in an exhibition match at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on Wednesday.
South Korea is not without its concerns. Their captain and ace, Son Heung-min, is not at 100%. He was recently diagnosed with a groin injury and has been focusing on his recovery during this call-up. Although he practiced in full on the eve of the Tunisia match, Klinsmann didn’t take the risk of playing him against Tunisia.
However, there is a chance that Son will be available for the Vietnam game. He was fit enough to play in full training just before the Tunisia game, and he needs time to get used to the national team before the Asian Cup next January.
Most importantly, the player himself is willing to play. “I don’t have any other desire, but I do have a desire to play. I definitely want to play in the domestic matches,” he said, not ruling out the possibility of playing.
Son’s participation is also a topic of interest in Vietnam. According to Vietnamese media outlet Vong Daplus, “Son Heung-min did not play against Tunisia because he has not fully recovered from his injury. However, he said he would like to play against Vietnam.” According to the Korea Football Association, more Vietnamese journalists than expected will be on hand for the game to catch a glimpse of Son Heung-min.
It’s not just the media that’s excited about Son, but the players as well. Vietnamese midfielder Quy Ngoc Hai (30-Song Lam Nguyen) said he would like to meet Son and talk to him before the game against South Korea.먹튀검증
Meanwhile, Vietnam has been in a bad mood lately. Head coach Philippe Troussier (FRA), who took over the reins this year, has been criticized following back-to-back 0-2 losses to China and Uzbekistan. Trousier has been at the center of criticism, even being compared to former coach Park Hang-seo.