(World Cup) With 1st match one week away, S. Korea hold 1st two-a-day
DOHA, Nov. 17 (Yonhap) — With their first match at this year’s FIFA World Cup now one week away, South Korea had two training sessions Thursday, the first two-a-day for the Taegeuk Warriors in Qatar.
The South Korean team arrived here Monday morning and trained for the first time later the same afternoon at Al Egla Training Facility in Doha. The players were back out for another session at 5 p.m. Tuesday and then had their first morning practice at 10 p.m. Wednesday.
Head coach Paulo Bento ran his 26-man squad through two sessions Thursday. In the morning, only the first 15 minutes were open to the media. Players did some light jogging, stretching and core strengthening exercises.
The evening session began around 5:30 p.m., with only the first 15 minutes open once again. Players took part in passing drills before moving on to some strategic training behind the closed gates.
South Korea’s first Group H match will be against Uruguay next Thursday. Over the remaining days, South Korea will be hoping to get the entire team healthy.
The team’s captain and best player, Son Heung-min, is still recovering after undergoing surgery to repair multiple fractures around his left eye. The Tottenham Hotspur star has been training with a protective mask made of carbon, though he has yet to settle on a timetable for return.
Son’s absence will deal a huge blow to South Korea’s hopes of making it out of Group H, with Ghana on Nov. 28 and Portugal on Dec. 2 on the horizon.
The national team’s one other Premier League player, Hwang Hee-chan of Wolverhampton Wanderers, has been slowed by left hamstring discomfort. Hwang, who said he’s been dealing with the issue for about two weeks, has yet to be a full participant in drills, instead getting some work and treatment on the side.
“I’ve gotten so much better after getting treated here,” Hwang said. “I should be able to join the rest of the team soon.”
Left fullback Kim Jin-su has been hampered by a right hamstring injury, and he, too, has been a limited participant in Doha so far.
