Hwang Seon-hong-ho has been a “injury variable” since being called up…Kang Yoon-koo and Byun Joon-soo leave the group
As the Olympic soccer team begins its preparations for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Asian Cup in September, it has been hit with an injury setback on day one.
The U-22 Olympic team, coached by Hwang Sun-hong, assembled in Changwon on Monday afternoon to prepare for the first Asian qualifier for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and three Group B matches for the 2024 AFC U-23 Asian Cup, scheduled for September 6-12 (Qatar on September 6, Kyrgyzstan on September 9, and Myanmar on September 12).
The 2024 AFC U-23 Asian Cup is a qualifying tournament for the Paris Olympics, so the team is determined to win all of their matches, even against weaker opponents, to improve their performance.
Coach Hwang announced the 26-man roster for the Olympic team’s training in Changwon on April 22, but the team had to deal with injuries on the first day of training.
Defender Byun Jun-soo (Daejeon Hana Citizen) and midfielder Kang Yoon-gu (Ulsan Hyundai) were dropped due to injury, and defender Lee Sang-hyuk (Gimpo) and forward Hong Yun-sang (Pohang) were called up in their place.
In addition, Kim Jun-hong (Gimcheon), who was originally selected as a goalkeeping reserve, received a call-up to the A squad announced today, and Shin Song-hoon (Gimcheon) was selected as a replacement.
According to the Korea Football Association, Hwang Sun-hong and Jürgen Klinsmann coordinated the replacement of Kim Jun-hong.
“When Coach Klinsmann heard about the injury to Song Bum-geun (Shonan Belmare) and was looking for an alternative goalkeeper, he showed interest in Kim Jun-hong, who was selected for the Olympic team’s call-up training,” said an official from the KFA. “Coach Hwang Sun-hong also agreed to send Kim Jun-hong to give him experience with the A team as he was the ‘No. 3 goalkeeper’ in the Olympic team.”
Hwang also had to make four changes to his squad on the 25th, dropping Bae Joon-ho (Daejeon), who is preparing to move to England’s Stoke City, and selecting Hwang Jae-hwan (Ulsan).
Hwang will hold his first training session at the Changwon Football Center later in the afternoon on Sept. 28 to begin full-scale preparations for the AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualifiers.
South Korea’s first opponent on Sept. 6 is Qatar, which has automatic qualification as the host nation, so the result of the match will not affect their ranking.
South Korea leads the U-23s’ head-to-head record against Kyrgyzstan, their second opponent, with one win, and Myanmar, their third opponent, with a 1-1 draw.
Tickets for Hwang’s three matches will go on sale on July 30 at 7 p.m. via the Korea Football Association’s online ticketing platform, PLAYKFA.
If the online sales are not sold out, 먹튀검증토토사이트 tickets will be sold at the Changwon Football Center ticket office on the day of the match.