Coelho Picks National Team

It`s time for `Coelho-style football.`

Head Coach of the National Team, Umberto Coelho had a press conference at the Football Center on Thursday and announced the list of 21 members for the National Team. They are all Korean players slated to play in the “A” match (match between national teams) against Columbia, which will be held in Busan on March 29.

The list originally included 22 players. However, since the injury level of Kim Nam-il of Excelsior in the Dutch League was not confirmed, it deferred him for now. He plans to decide either to select Kim Nam-il or to replace him with another player by March 24.

In this first `Coelho` National Team, 13 members of the 2002 World Cup team, including Yoo Sang-chul, Ahn Jung-hwan, Lee Woon-jae, Seol Ki-hyeon, Park Ji-sung, Lee Young-pyo, Lee Eul-yong, Kim Tae-young, and Lee Chun-soo, were included. Lee Dong-gook, Sim Jae-won, and Kim Sang-sik are former members of the National Team, and Choi Sung-gook is the only one selected from the National Youth Team.

“I formed this team after analyzing World Cup matches and the match against Brazil through videotapes and collecting opinions from the technical committee and coaches Park Sung-hwa and Choi Kang-hui,” Coach Coelho said. He explained that the team has 2 players over 31 years of age, 9 players between 25 and 30, and 10 players younger than 25 years of age, so he is attempting to pair youth and experience on the team.

The tactics of the National Team that Coach Coelho has in mind is the `4-2-3-1` formation based on four defensive players. The `four-backs system` was a tactic that former Head Coach Guus Hiddink tried earlier and changed to the `3-4-3` formation, three-backs system. The four-backs system is a formation of 4 defenders lined up horizontally, and the counter attack of both fullbacks with strong defense and speed is its main purpose.

“As far as I figure, Korean players are active and fast, yet, they have a weakness in missing the ball often because of poor ball control,” Coach Coelho said. “Since we must have speed to win, I am planning tactics based on the four-backs system to make the most of the Korean players` strong points.”

The National Team will be called up on March 27 in Busan, stay together for training for two days, and play a match against Columbia at the Busan World Cup Stadium at 7 p.m. on March 29.

Soon-Il Kwon stt77@donga.com