Hana is heading to the World Cup after 'changing the position' and challenging the first foreign-born Korea in South Korea.

*This content was translated by AI.

Jens Kastrov (23, Mönchengladbach), who was once noted as the next-generation midfield resource for the South Korean national team, will challenge the 2026 FIFA 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup stage as a "wingback" resource, not a midfielder.

Castrov, who joined the national soccer team after being called by coach Hong Myung-bo, moved from Germany to London, England, on the 24th (Korea Standard Time) to join the national team. Hong Myung-bo Team will prepare for the match against Ivory Coast at 11 p.m. on the 28th and the match against Austria in Vienna, Austria, on the 1st of next month.

Kastrov, born in Dusseldorf, Germany, is a player with a Korean mother and a German father, and he became the first foreign-born mixed-race male player to wear the national flag in September last year through an away warm-up match against the U.S. and Mexico. At that time, head coach Hong Myung-bo said, "He is a different type of player from the existing midfielders," expecting him to be a great help to the national team's midfield.

Since then, Castrov has consistently joined the A-team after being called by coach Hong until Brazil and Paraguay in October and Bolivia and Ghana in November. However, out of the six A matches, only two were selected as starters, and all of them played only 45 minutes in the first half. Initially, it was expected to become the core of the midfield along with Hwang In-beom (Feyenoord), but contrary to expectations, it did not quickly establish itself in the national team's midfield.

Nevertheless, Coach Hong Myung-bo called Castrov to the national team without fail in the final mock test, the Ivory Coast and Austria, ahead of the 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup. However, the position drew attention as it was classified as a "defender" rather than a midfielder who had been called up so far. This is a glimpse of the change in Castrov's utilization within the national team.

In fact, Kastrov has recently been selected as a side resource in his team Mönchengladbach, not as a midfield. He was in the right wingback at the beginning of the position change, but since last month, he has moved to the left and has been establishing his position as a main player. Even just before the national team was called up, he played as a left wingback and even scored "multi goals."

Just as he was classified as a defender, a change in the use of Castrov is also detected in coach Hong Myung-bo's plan within the national team. Moreover, Lee Myung-jae (Daejeon Hana Citizen), who has been constantly called by head coach Hong recently, was injured in the national team. As a right wingback resource, Seol Young-woo (Trvena Zvezda), Kim Moon-hwan (Daejeon), and Lee Myung-jae are missing left wingback resources, and castrope is added to Lee Tae-seok (Austria Vienna). Looking back on the convened national team wingback structure, Castrov is expected to be tested as a left wingback resource first through the A-match warm-up match in March.

If he can show his competitiveness as a wingback resource while being called by coach Hong as a midfield resource in the first place, Castrov's chances of joining the final entry into the World Cup for the first time in his life could increase that much. The joining of the "European Big Leaguer," which can play multiple positions, is also welcome to Hong Myung-bo to increase the competitiveness of the World Cup. He will also write a new history of being the first foreign-born mixed-race male player to participate in the World Cup.

- GK: Kim Seung-gyu (FC Tokyo), Cho Hyun-woo (Ulsan HD), Song Bum-keun (Jeonbuk)

- DF: Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich), Cho Yoo-min (Sharjah FC), Kim Tae-hyun (Kashima Antlers), Lee Tae-seok (Austriabin), Seol Young-woo (Trvenazvezda), Jens Kastrov (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Kim Joo-sung (Sanfrecce Hiroshima), Lee Han-beom (Mit Willan), Kim Moon-hwan (Daejeon Hana Citizen)

- MF: Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), Yang Hyun-jun (Celtic), Baek Seung-ho (Birmingham City), Park Jin-seop (Joji FC), Hong Hyun-suk (KAAhent), Kim Jin-kyu (Jeonbuk Hyundai), Kwon Hyuk-kyu (Carlsruhe), Bae Jun-ho (Stock City), Um Ji-sung (Swansea City), Lee Jae-sung (Minutes), Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton Wanderers)

- FW: Son Heung-min (Los Angeles FC), Oh Hyun-kyu (Besiktashi), Cho Kyu-sung (Mit Willan)

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*This content was translated by AI.