SEOUL: South Korea’s coach backed Son Heung-min to get back to goal-scoring ways at his fourth World Cup after on Saturday naming the striker in his squad for the tournament.
Captain Son has struggled for goals since swapping English Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur for Los Angeles FC in Major League Soccer a year ago.
The 33-year-old has scored only twice for his new club but Hong Myung-bo thinks a change of scenery could help as South Korea face World Cup co-hosts Mexico, the Czech Republic and South Africa in Group ‘A’.
“When I went to Los Angeles and watched the matches myself, I saw that he was playing in a somewhat different role compared to how we use him, in a slightly deeper position, which meant he wasn’t getting many chances,” Hong said after naming his 26-man squad.
“So I believe we need to continue communicating with the players and work together on identifying which positions and roles are the most suitable and effective for each of them as we prepare.”
Son heads an experienced Korean squad that also features Paris St-Germain midfielder Lee Kang-in, Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae and Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Hwang Hee-chan.
Besiktas striker Oh Hyeon-gyu was also included, along with Celtic’s Yang Hyun-jin and Birmingham’s Paik Seung-ho.
German-born Jens Castrop of Borussia Moenchengladbach also made the cut.
South Korea will play all their first-round games in Mexico and take on the Czechs in their opener on June 11.
Hong admitted the high altitude in Guadalajara, where South Korea play two games, could give his team problems.
He cited Son’s experience playing against Mexican opposition for his club, which left the forward with “lingering exhaustion”.
“Although the altitude we will be facing is not quite as extreme as that, we are none the less unaccustomed to high-altitude environments,” said Hong.
“Consequently, we believe that adapting to the 1,600-metre elevation will be crucial for us.”
Hong came under fire after South Korea lost two friendlies in Europe without scoring a goal in March.
They went down 1-0 to Austria in Vienna before suffering a 4-0 drubbing against the Ivory Coast in England.
“Our primary objective is to advance to the round of 32 in a strong position,” said Hong.
Squad:
Goalkeepers: Jo Hyeon-woo, Kim Seung-gyu, Song Bum-keun; Defenders: Kim Moon-hwan, Kim Min-jae, Kim Tae-hyon, Park Jin-seob, Seol Young-woo, Jens Castrop, Lee Ki-hyuk, Lee Tae-seok, Lee Han-beom, Cho Yu-min; Midfielders: Kim Jin-gyu, Bae Jun-ho, Paik Seung-ho, Yang Hyun-jun, Eom Ji-sung, Lee Kang-in, Lee Dong-gyeong, Lee Jae-sung, Hwang In-beom, Hwang Hee-chan; Forwards: Son Heung-min, Oh Hyeon-gyu, Cho Gue-sung.
Published in Dawn, May 17th, 2026
