"Hong Myung-bo's Hong Myung-bo Team Kkina" season is already out for the second time, and the World Cup's midfield is 'super emergency'

*This content was translated by AI.

Hong Myung-bo, the coach of the South Korean national soccer team, is preparing for the 2026 FIFA North American World Cup, and his anxiety is deepening. Following Park Yong-woo (Al Ain), Won Doo-jae (Corpacan) was virtually ruled out for the season due to injury. Even the replacement player, who was tested to fill the injury gap, collapsed, and it is a twisted situation.

The Korpacan club announced the injury of the bean paste on its official channel on the 4th (Korea Standard Time). According to the club, Won Doo-jae suffered a shoulder injury while starting in the quarterfinals of the President's Cup against Shabab al-Ahli Dubai on the 1st. He will be on the operating table soon, and it will take four to five months to recover. Even if it recovers faster than expected, it is actually a season out considering the time required to raise the sense of play again. His participation in the North American World Cup in June was also virtually canceled.

It is another major negative factor following Park Yong-woo's cruciate ligament rupture in September last year. At that time, Park Yong-woo was replaced after a knee collision during the game, and was diagnosed with an anterior cruciate ligament rupture. Considering that the injury takes at least eight months, Park Yong-woo's chances of playing in the World Cup have virtually disappeared. Coach Hong Myung-bo also said at the time, "It's a pity for me and the team," adding, "It's a pity for him and for the team," and he couldn't hide his regret over his departure from the injury, which is a "treator" and the core of the midfield.

Kong Won-jae was a resource chosen by head coach Hong to fill such a gap in Park Yong-woo. Won Doo-jae, who was excluded from the away match between the U.S. and Mexico in September last year, the first warm-up match after the World Cup qualifying round, returned to the national team immediately after Park Yong-woo left due to injury and was put to the test by playing in three consecutive A-match games (one start) between September and October. Considering the role he can play in the midfield, even if he is not a sure starter, the possibility of playing in the North American World Cup also seemed that great.

However, as even the beans were on the operating table and left the line, Hong Myung-bo Team's midfield was also in a "super emergency." Coach Hong Myung-bo has not even been able to properly experiment with the midfield combination due to a series of injuries to Hwang In-beom (Feyenoord) since the World Cup qualifiers. On top of that, head coach Hong's plan for the composition of the midfield was also twisted as representative players who can take on defensive roles were judged out of the season one after another.

Coach Hong Myung-bo called Kwon Hyuk-kyu (Carlsruhe) back to the national team for the first time in a year and a month after Park Yong-woo's injury left. However, as he failed to get time to play in his team recently, he eventually headed to the second division of Germany and had only one A-match experience, so his competitiveness in the World Cup will inevitably remain questionable. Finding other defensive midfielder resources is also not easy considering the number of warm-up matches (3-4 games) left until the World Cup or the remaining period.

Moreover, South Korea has no choice but to put more weight on defense on the World Cup stage due to its objective power. This is why it is even more difficult for players who have to play an important role in the midfield and defense to collapse one after another. Coach Hong Myung-bo, who was already wary of the possibility of injuries to his main players ahead of the World Cup, is bound to be more worried about the situation.

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*This content was translated by AI.