Korean Soccer, Defense Is `OK` - Offense Is `Still…`

Korea tied with Turkey without a goal in the evaluation match that was held in Bochum, Germany, on the 27th.

The Korean national team, which earned 1 victory and 2 ties during the European field training, now holds the record of 2-victory, 3-tie, 4-defeat in 9 matches during this year.

Korea positioned Hwang Sun-Hong and Choi Yong-Su as the two-top, and Yoon Jung-Hwan as the playmaker on the day, and played on equal level with Turkey, which had its starting members like Hakan Sukur. The defense line consisted of Hong Myung-Bo, Kim Tae-Young, and Choi Jin-Chul, and it proved to be capable of intercepting Turkish striker Sukur with a stable defensive wall. Korea was ahead in the number of shootings by 8-5, but failed to actualize a goal.

After the game, coach Guus Hiddink seemed quite satisfied, saying that “the team is changing compared to the past”. He said, “Turkey was a difficult team because of its European big league players, but our team did better than expected. In terms of the play-style and game management, it has become much better than 2 or 3 months ago, and the players seem improved also.” Hiddink mentioned about Yoon Jung-Hwan, whose final entry is not finalized yet, “It is a good experience for him to have played some fast soccer, but when he returns to slow J-League, I am worried that he might lose the rhythm. During the field training, he played creatively and earned certain recognition, but it’s not satisfactory yet.”

buddy@donga.com