Jurgen Klinsmann is hoping that his third attempt as head coach of the Korean men’s national football team will bring him his first victory. This week, Korea, ranked 27th, will host Peru, ranked 21st, at Busan Asiad Main Stadium in Busan. The match is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Friday.
This game against Peru is the first of two friendly matches for Korea this month. The second match will be against El Salvador in Daejeon, located approximately 160 kilometers south of Seoul, on the following Tuesday.
In Klinsmann’s previous two matches as head coach, Korea played to a 2-2 draw against Colombia on March 24 and suffered a 2-1 loss to Uruguay four days later.
Despite the outcomes, Klinsmann expressed satisfaction with the team’s performance in those matches and emphasized the importance of building on the positive aspects. He also stated his desire to see different results this time, indicating that winning the games is a priority alongside maintaining the excitement shown in the previous matches.
Klinsmann will face a challenge in assembling his defense for the upcoming matches as two key center backs will be unavailable. Kim Min-jae, who currently plays for Napoli and was named the best defender of the 2022-23 Serie A season, will be absent due to his mandatory military training, which he earned exemption from by winning the gold medal at the 2018 Asian Games. Kim Young-gwon, who usually partners with Kim Min-jae in central defense and plays for Ulsan Hyundai FC,토토총판 is sidelined with a right quad injury.
To compensate for the absence of these two players, Klinsmann has selected Portimonense defender Park Ji-su as one of the center backs. Additionally, Kwon Kyung-won of Gamba Osaka, an experienced player, was initially chosen but was later dropped from the national team due to an injury sustained in Japan. Klinsmann will need to rely on the available options to form a new defensive lineup for the matches against Peru and El Salvador.