‘Let’s go for our first winning streak with golden energy! Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), Jung Woo-young (Stuttgart), Hong Hyun-seok (Ghent) and Seol Young-woo (Ulsan), the ‘golden quartet’ who helped Korea win the men’s soccer gold medal at the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games, will bring their ‘winning spirit’ to Klinsmann’s ship. The South Korean national football team, coached by Jürgen Klinsmann, will gather at the Paju National Football Center (NFC) from September 9 to prepare for a two-game A match series in October.
The team, ranked 26th in the FIFA rankings, will face Tunisia (29th) at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on Oct. 13 at 8 p.m. and Vietnam (95th) at the Suwon World Cup Stadium on Oct. 17 at 8 p.m. The two matches will be held back-to-back. After going winless in its first five matches (three draws and two losses), the Klinsmann’s registered its first victory in its sixth game with a 1-0 win over Saudi Arabia on March 13.
South Korea leads the all-time series against Tunisia 2-2, with 17 wins, five draws and two defeats, while Vietnam leads 24-17 in the series .It will be the first time since June 2015 that the two teams have met in more than eight years, and the first time since September 2004.Vietnam, in particular, have rarely had the opportunity to play each other outside of World Cup qualifying due to the large gap in FIFA rankings between the two countries and their Asian neighbors.
However, Klinsmann chose Vietnam as a test 토토사이트 match to help the team adapt to what he called a “tight defense” in the second round of qualifying for the 2026 North American Cup starting in November (winner of China-Thailand-Singapore-Guam). South Korea will open Group C of the 2026 North American World Cup Second Qualifying Round at home against the winner of the Singapore-Guam first leg on Nov. 16, followed by a second leg away to China on Nov. 21.Klinsmann named 24 Taegeuk Warriors in the last two days to prepare for the two October A matches.
The main overseas players include Son Heung-min (Tottenham), Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich), Lee Jae-sung (Mainz), Hwang In-beom (Zvezda), Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton) and Cho Kyu-sung (Mittwilan).The most notable names in the squad are Asian Games gold medalist Hwang Sun-hong-ho. Lee Kang-in, Jung Woo-young, Hong Hyun-seok, and Seol Young-woo, the “golden quartet,” flew home from the Asian Games on the afternoon of Aug. 8 and will begin training for the call-up on Aug. 9.
Jung Woo-young had an “extraordinary performance” at the Asian Games, scoring seven goals, while Hong Hyun-seok scored a free kick in the quarterfinal against China. Lee Kang-in joined the team from the second game of the group stage to bolster the midfield, while ‘wildcard’ Seol Young-woo provided support at fullback. Lee Kang-in and Jeong Woo-young missed Klinsmann’s September A match due to injury and Asian Games call-ups, respectively, and will be eager to showcase their ‘Gold Medal + Military Service’ status in the October A match.