Who will be Son Heung-min's 'last dance partner'? The crowded second-line attack leaves coaches with a dilemma [Prediction of Hong Myung-bo's final roster ③]

*This content was translated by AI.

The 26 Taegeuk Warriors who will compete in the 2026 FIFA North American World Cup will be announced on the 16th. This is the final roster to be selected about one year and nine months after the first announcement of Hong Myung-bo's team in August 2024. Since Coach Hong Myung-bo took charge, a total of 69 players have worn the Taegeuk mark. Unless a major surprise occurs, it is highly likely that 26 players will be chosen from among them by Coach Hong. StarNews will introduce predictions for each position in the final roster for the North American World Cup in a series. /Editor's note

Along with the change in Hong Myung-bo's "three-back tactic," the position with the fiercest competition is undoubtedly the attack. With the formation shifting from the 4-2-3-1 used in World Cup qualifiers to a 3-4-2-1 system, one spot in the attack has been reduced. Ironically, this is also the position where players active overseas, such as in Europe, are most concentrated.

The outline for the top striker has essentially emerged. It is highly likely that Son Heung-min (34, LAFC), Oh Hyun-kyu (25, Besiktas), and Cho Gue-sung (28, Midtjylland) will make the roster. While Oh Hyun-kyu is showing a terrifying upward trajectory, making him worthy of being a World Cup starter, coexistence or competition with Son Heung-min remains a variable, but this is a matter of the World Cup starting lineup and is far from concerns regarding the final roster.

Although he has not scored many goals for his club, Cho Gue-sung, who returned after focusing on rehabilitation for a long time, is highly likely to accompany the team to the World Cup as a backup tall striker. In this process, Oh Se-hoon (27, Shimizu S-Pulse), Ju Min-gyu (36, Daejeon Hana Citizen), and Lee Ho-jae (26, Pohang Steelers), who were put on the test by Coach Hong as top attacking resources, have seen their chances of World Cup participation become slim when considering the team call-up trends.

Due to the tactical change reducing the number of attackers, the second line is in a state of saturation. Especially on the left, since Son Heung-min can also play there, the competition has become even more intense. Looking back at Coach Hong Myung-bo's recent plans, Hwang Hee-chan (30, Wolverhampton) and Lee Jae-sung (34, Mainz) are in a contest for the left second-line attack position. Additionally, Eom Ji-sung (23, Swansea City) and Bae Jun-ho (23, Stoke City) have also been put on the test for the left flank position.

On the opposite side, the right, Lee Kang-in (25, Paris Saint-Germain) has firmly secured his spot. Here, Bae Jun-ho, who can play on both sides, Yang Hyun-jun (24, Celtic FC), and left-footed Lee Dong-gyeong (29, Ulsan HD) are competing. Yang Min-hyeok (19, Coventry City), who was the last among the second-line resources to be put on the test, has become virtually impossible to make the World Cup roster as he has been pushed out of his team's lineup. Players like Lee Seung-woo (32, Jeonbuk), Moon Seon-min (34, Seoul), and Jeon Jin-woo (27, Oxford United), who were previously called by Coach Hong Myung-bo, are in a situation where a surprise selection is difficult to expect given the competitive landscape.

In the case of the second line, European-based players such as Lee Kang-in, Hwang Hee-chan, Lee Jae-sung, Eom Ji-sung, Bae Jun-ho, and Yang Hyun-jun appear to have a comparative advantage. Especially, players like Eom Ji-sung and Yang Hyun-jun are consistently playing for their clubs and can also play as wing-backs, making them highly likely to have a comparative advantage in Coach Hong's final roster deliberations. While Bae Jun-ho, who has consistently been called by Coach Hong and can play on both sides, has an unstable position at his club, Lee Dong-gyeong, who was ignored by Coach Hong during the March A-match period but has been consistently active in the K-League, could be a variable.

Meanwhile, Coach Hong Myung-bo will hold a press conference at 4 p.m. on the 16th at the West Onmadang of the KT Gwanghwamun Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, to announce the 26th players for the final North American World Cup roster. Two days later, on the 18th, the main squad will depart for the U.S., the pre-camp location, and overseas-based players will join locally in sequence according to their club league schedules. There will be no domestic departure ceremony; the Korea Football Association explained that this was a decision made considering the optimization of physical condition for the main tournament schedule and adaptation to high altitude.

According to an announcement by the Salvadoran Football Association on the 5th, a friendly match between South Korea and El Salvador is scheduled to be held in the U.S. on June 4 (Korean time), and this match is highly likely to be the final pre-World Cup friendly. Prior to this, another friendly match is planned to be held in the U.S. The Korea Football Association's June friendly schedule is expected to be announced soon. After playing two friendly matches in the U.S., Hong Myung-bo's team will move to the decisive venue, Guadalajara, Mexico, on the 5th of next month. Thereafter, they will play Group A matches of the World Cup main tournament in order against the Czech Republic on the 12th, Mexico on the 19th, and South Africa on the 25th.

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*This content was translated by AI.