On September 30, the Korean Football Association officially announced the latest edition of the national team roster and held a press conference where head coach Hong Myung-bo attended and answered questions of interest to the media.
South Korea is about to face two World Cup matches on October 10 and 15 against Jordan and Iraq respectively. Regarding the injury of the much-anticipated star Son, Hong Myung-bo said, "I have communicated with him directly and he told me that he is slowly recovering, but is not fit enough to play at the moment. Our most important thing is to ensure his long-term health. The player himself, his club and our FA are in constant communication. Son himself is very eager to play, but as a manager, I can't risk putting him at greater risk. We will continue to be in communication with him and are also preparing a back-up plan in case he is unable to play in October."
On the absence of vice-captain Kim Young-Gwon, Hong Myung-Bo explained, "Kim Young-Gwon has played for Korea for a long time, and his absence doesn't mean he won't come back. At the moment he is feeling a bit tired and we need to give him some rest. When selecting players, we also considered players from the Middle East, who may be more suitable for the pace of our matches and climatic conditions in October."
In addition, Hong Mingfu also talked about what the team needs to improve: "After the September match, we conducted an internal assessment and concluded that the players' physical recovery level during the training period still needs to be further improved. Therefore, when choosing the lineup this time, we especially considered the physical load of each player, hoping that through scientific training and management, we can get the players in the best condition to meet the upcoming World Qualification Tournament."
