Kim Eun-joong’s gaze is focused on the quarterfinals.
The U-20 national team, led by coach Kim Eun-joong, played the 2023 U-20 Asian Cup group stage group C second match against Jordan held at JAR Stadium in Tashkent, Uzbekistan on the 5th (Korean time) between Bae Jun-ho (Daejeon Hana Citizen) and Kang Seong-jin (FC Seoul). They scored consecutive goals and won 2-0. Korea, which succeeded in two consecutive victories, will be ranked first in the group and advanced to the quarterfinals even if it draws in the final game against Tajikistan on the 8th.
Against Jordan, which was a watershed in the quarterfinals, coach Kim’s choice was a bold rotation. Coach Kim, who won 4-0 in the first match against Oman, made a whopping 7 changes to the starting lineup against Jordan. Only goalkeeper Kim Joon-hong (Gimcheon Sangmu), defender Hwang In-taek (Seoul E-Land), midfielder Lee Seung-won (Gangwon FC), and striker Bae Jun-ho were called up again after the match against Oman. Lee Young-joon (Gimcheon Managing Director) Kang Seong-jin and Kim Hee-seung (Daegu FC) were given new opportunities.
It was two paving stones. The first was conditioning. This competition follows a tight schedule over three days. Kim Eun-joong, whose entry consists of all professional players except for three college players, has just finished his winter training, so the players are not in 100% condition. He is also a player who is not in good shape. ‘Core defender’ Kim Ji-soo (Seongnam FC) is a representative example. Kim Ji-soo played full-time against Oman, but took a break against Jordan. Coach Kim gave his players even opportunities, improved his condition, and arranged his stamina. 스포츠토토
The second was a combination composition. Kim Eun-joong-ho said, “The skills of the players are even. So there is no definite main. Especially in the case of attackers. Bae Jun-ho, Kang Seong-jin, Kim Yong-hak (Portimonense), Lee Yeong-joon, Seong Jin-young (Korea University), etc. Even before the tournament, coach Kim had trouble forming a clear starting lineup. Coach Kim had a good performance against Oman, but he focused on finding the best combination by promoting other players against Jordan. This also increased competition between players.
Although he had a bit of a struggle against Jordan, coach Kim achieved the results he originally envisioned. With the result in hand, the operation of the rest of the game became more relaxed.
The reason coach Kim raised the odds of rotation was because of the quarterfinals. In this tournament, up to the 4th place team will be given a ticket to the U-20 World Cup finals to be held in Indonesia in May. Winning is the final goal, but the immediate task is to win in the quarterfinals and confirm the finals. In the quarterfinals, Korea will face Saudi Arabia, the winner of the previous tournament, or Japan, the “eternal rival.” As a result of analyzing the first game of the two teams, coach Kim evaluated that it was not easy.
At the end of the conclusion that there is a chance of winning only when we pack 100% of our power in the quarterfinals, coach Kim made a bold rotation and the result is successful.
