Son Heung-min, who overcame privacy issues and achieved his 'dream of winning', is now going to the World Cup finals in his country with the national flag
Son Heung-min, who overcame privacy issues and achieved his 'dream of winning', is now going to the World Cup finals in his country with the national flag
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Son Heung-min (33, Tottenham), the "captain" who holds the trophy for the first time in 15 years of his big league life, will play for his country's advance to the World Cup finals with the national flag.
Coach Hong Myung-bo of the national soccer team announced 26 Taegeuk Warriors to play in Group B 9 and 10 of the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup against Iraq (Wonjeong and Basra) on the 6th and Kuwait (home and Seoul) on the 10th at the Shinmun-ro Football Center in Seoul on the 26th, including Son Heung-min.
Earlier in October last year, Son Heung-min was unable to play in the second consecutive away games in the third qualifying round 3 and 4 due to a hamstring injury. Again, question marks were raised in the aftermath of his issuance. He left the ground for a month and made his return on the 11th by playing as a substitute in the English Premier League (EPL) match against Crystal Palace. His injury has not improved significantly. The reason he played somewhat too hard was because of the final of Manchester United and Europa League (UEL) in Bilbao, Spain, on the 22nd.
Tottenham manager Anze Postecoglou, who was in a tight spot as he was pushed to the bottom of the EPL this season, poured his all into UEL. Son Heung-min, who has never won a championship at a club since his debut as a professional player in Hamburg, Germany, in 2010, also showed his commitment to play. Son played as a substitute in the second half of the final match against Manchester United, and led Tottenham to a 1-0 victory, achieving his dream of winning the title. However, he was absent again in the final 38th round of Brighton and EPL ahead of the announcement of the team's roster due to injury.
On top of that, a woman recently claimed to have had Son Heung-min's child and tried to extort money from him, drawing much attention. Concerns were raised over whether Son Heung-min would be able to join the national team and play with his normal body and mind.
Hong expressed his trust. "Coaches have communicated with him on the issue of Son Heung-min. He said there was no big problem. We communicated right after winning the Europa League. We called him because we said there was no problem in playing games."
More than anything else, he welcomed the removal of the tag. "His personal performance was the best, but he failed to win in a long time in a team, and I am happy to win in a big European competition as the captain. Everyone should be proud of him," Hong said. "Congratulations. I hope he continues well in the national team."
◇ List keyword; 'best condition and experience' to overcome Iraq's away variables
Korea ranks first in the group with 16 points (four wins and four draws). Jordan (score point 13) and Iraq (score point 12) are ranked second and third, respectively. If they draw with Iraq in the ninth match, they will be given a ticket to the World Cup finals, which will give them up to the second place in the group regardless of the outcome of the match against Kuwait.
The topic of the 26-member roster is not about the value of his name but about the man in the best physical condition at this point in time. In fact, he has to wage all-out fight in an away match in Iraq. As he had to fight against heat waves and unfamiliar atmosphere unique to the Middle East, he gave top priority to players with good form. 토토사이트 More than anything, players in European leagues are not in good condition as they are now taking a break after the end of the season. For this reason, the team has excluded Bae Joon-ho (Stoke City) and Um Ji-sung (Swansea City), who have caused the "young blood" trend. Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich), a key player in defense who played with an Achilles tendon injury, was also excluded from the list in June following March.