Cho Seong-wook (28), who led Seongnam FC to victory in the opening game, confessed a trauma that even Seongnam coach Lee Ki-hyung (49) did not know.
Seongnam FC defeated Ansan Greeners 2-1 in the first round of the 2023 season of Hana 1 Q K-League 2 held at Tancheon Sports Complex at 4:00 pm on the 1st, presenting victory to home fans.
Jo Seong-wook, the protagonist of the first goal, played a big role. Starting as a central defender, he shook the net with a wonderful header from a corner kick in the 11th minute of the first half. After that, he continued to lead the defense stably, and Seongnam was able to complete a thrilling victory with Shin Jae-won’s theater goal right before the end of the game.
It was also a meaningful day for Cho Sung-wook. He made his professional debut in 2018 wearing a Seongnam uniform, but the wall of his professional stage was high. He did not get a chance in Gyeongnam loan the following year, and even after solving the military problem by playing as a social worker in the K4 League Jinju Citizens Soccer Team, he was not given a midterm job. However, Cho Seong-wook gradually increased his playing time from the end of last year, and took the starting position from the opening game this season.
Nevertheless, Cho Seong-wook, whom I met in the joint coverage area (Mix Zone) after the game, had a calm expression. He continued calmly, saying, “It was a tough game, but I’m so happy that we won.”
Cho Seong-wook picked ‘the sweat shed all winter’ as the secret to victory. He said, “I had the most difficult winter training in my soccer life. Personally, I worked really hard. I didn’t think it was difficult to play. Everyone seems to be playing well (not just me).”
Cho Seong-wook added, “It wasn’t hard physically. However, I scored the first goal, but I gave up one goal before the end of the first half. It was a little difficult because I was anxious that I couldn’t draw. There was a psychological burden.”
Seongnam conceded a penalty kick in the first half extra time when Kang Kang-bin tried to block the opponent’s counterattack with a tackle. Nevertheless, coach Lee Ki-hyung said in a press conference after the game, “(At halftime), Ui-bin said it was not his fault, but that he conceded because he was lacking overall. He told me that we could win if we believed in what we initially prepared and played. He told us to play while encouraging each other.” .
Seong-wook Cho was also of the same mind. He said, “Before that, I wished I had cut off the foul, but I couldn’t. So I said to Ui-bin, ‘I’m sorry.’ I wanted to win more,” he said. “The team tactics and style itself is a system that cannot be returned unless the players trust each other. The coach told us to play while trusting each other.” 안전놀이터
Previously, coach Lee Ki-hyung expressed his feelings ahead of the opening game with the word ‘excitement’. What was Cho Seong-wook like? He said, “I wasn’t nervous. I thought I wanted to run.”
Have you ever dreamed of scoring goals? Cho Seong-wook laughed that it was not so, and said, “My colleagues and head coach Kim Tae-soo kept saying that I was going to score a goal. My younger brothers did too.
Cho Seong-wook’s goal on this day was his professional debut goal. He is already in his 6th year as a pro, but he has not scored yet. He looked back on the scene of his debut goal, saying, “I didn’t feel it. It was good, but when I woke up, the time had passed. I tried to refrain from being happy as much as possible because I thought I shouldn’t get excited.”
Cho Seong-wook also told an amazing story. He paused for a moment when he heard about the set piece and said, “I couldn’t tell the manager, but in fact, I had a trauma about heading. I’ve hurt my back a lot when I jumped and headed and fell. So, when there was someone next to me, I was scared and couldn’t jump well.” confessed.
Next, Jo Seong-wook said, “So I was really scolded. This time, the coach jokingly said, ‘If you pass the ball, you will die today.'” He smiled and said, “I was scared, but I tried to overcome it. I headed with the mindset of ‘Let’s do it first.’ I can’t say I overcame the trauma 100%, but I think I overcame 80%.”
How did you feel when Shin Jae-won scored the winning goal? When the story of the winning goal came out, Seong-wook Cho drew a smile on his lips. He said, “I liked it so much that I ran. I saw the fans and thought, ‘Oh, I played soccer because of this.’ It was the most rewarding and pleasant moment while playing soccer.”
Lastly, Cho Seong-wook smiled shyly when coach Lee Gi-hyeong praised him, saying, “A player with a lot of things.” he is ” I never once thought I was good at it. So I tried to work harder,” he said shyly, “I didn’t know the director thought so.”
