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Football attention switches to 2018 Asian Games

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South Korean football playters arrive at the Jakarta Hatta International Airport, Sunday. Yonhap
South Korean football playters arrive at the Jakarta Hatta International Airport, Sunday. Yonhap

By John Duerden

South Korea's men start their campaign to win soccer gold at the 2018 Asian Games when Korea meets Bahrain in West Java on Wednesday. Korea won the 2014 title and is considered the front-runner to take center spot on the podium again, but it will be far from easy.

Twenty-four other nations have the same ambition, but for now the aim is to move forward from Group E, which also contains Malaysia and Kyrgyzstan. It would be a shock if Korea does not progress.

Like the other teams, Korea has a roster of 20 players, of whom 17 must be under-23 and the remaining three can be any age.

Korea has a relatively star-studded squad. Forwards Hwang Hee-chan and Lee Seung-woo both appeared at the 2018 World Cup in June, when Korea defeated defending champion Germany despite losing the first two games. Central defender Kim Min-jae would have gone to Russia had he not been injured.

And two of the three over-age players were Korea's best performers at the World Cup. Cho Hyun-woo, one of the best goalkeepers at the Cup, will be between the posts in Indonesia. It is a chance for the 26 year-old to show that his performances in Russia were not a fluke.

Son Heung-min is at the opposite end of the field. The forward will not play in the first game because he was in action for Tottenham Hotspur in its 2-1 win over Newcastle United in the opening game of the 2018-19 English Premier League season on Saturday. The long journey from England to Southeast Asia means that Son will probably be too tired to face Bahrain, but he should be in action soon.

The reason why Son is coming so far is that gold will given to him, and for the rest of the roster, exemption from impending military service. That gives the Taeguk Warriors an incredible incentive to win, but there is always lots of pressure. For many countries, any medal would be welcome, but for Korea, silver or bronze would equal failure.

It is up to Coach Kim Hak-beom, who enjoyed plenty of success in the K-League with Seongnahm Ilhwa Chunma in the last decade, to deliver that success.

"Like any tournament, you want to start well and then improve from there," Kim said. "We have been preparing carefully and we will need all the players on the roster to contribute if we are to achieve our goals. I have faith in our players."

Korea will be the team that all others want to beat. Son is by far the biggest star to play in the competition and will be the subject of plenty of attention on and off the field.

The rewards are great, however, and will be up for grabs on September 1 in the gold medal match. Korea has to be there.




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