'It's Cho Gue-sung, not Son Heung-min': Striker Cho Gue-sung starts as the lone forward, 'supernova' Lee Ki-hyeok also starts... El Salvador match lineup revealed

*This content was translated by AI.

The starting lineup for the El Salvador match under coach Hong Myung-bo has been released.

South Korea, led by head coach Hong Myung-bo, will play a friendly match against El Salvador at 10 a.m. (Korean time) on the 4th at South Field of Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, USA.

The starting lineup before the match has been made public. According to NEWS1, South Korea will deploy a 3-4-2-1 formation. Leading the front line is striker Cho Gue-sung, with Lee Dong-gyeong and Hwang Hee-chan positioned on the left and right wings, respectively. The midfield will be formed by Lee Jae-sung and Hwang In-beom, who was brought on in the second half of the previous match against Trinidad and Tobago to assess his condition.

The left and right wingbacks will be Lee Tae-seok and Seol Young-woo. The back three will consist of Lee Ki-hyeok, Kim Min-jae, and Lee Han-beom from left to right. Goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu will wear the gloves.

This match serves as the final mock exam before stepping onto the 2026 FIFA World Cup group stage. Particularly, it is the second live match played in the United States, Utah (altitude 1,460m), which has an altitude similar to Guadalajara, Mexico (altitude 1,571m), where the group stage matches 1 and 2 will be held, with a focus on adapting to high-altitude conditions.

Most importantly, this match is the first 'complete team' stage where all players selected for the final World Cup roster are gathered. Lee Kang-in, who led his club to win the 2025-2026 UEFA Champions League (UCL), joined the team on the 2nd, completing the full-strength squad.

The team's atmosphere is good. South Korea secured a decisive 5-0 victory over Trinidad and Tobago in a friendly match held at the same venue on the 31st of last month. Ranked 25th in the FIFA rankings, South Korea aims to end with a perfect two-game winning streak against El Salvador, ranked 100th.

As important as results and experimentation is 'injury prevention.' In the previous match against Trinidad and Tobago, Jo Yu-min was ruled out due to a long-term injury, and Jo Wi-je was called up as a replacement. Bae Jun-ho was also substituted due to an injury, but fortunately, it is reported that his physical condition is not severely strained. With the World Cup just around the corner, finishing the match without any injured players is the top priority.

Meanwhile, after finishing today's match, the national team will move to Guadalajara, Mexico, where the World Cup base camp is set up, on the 5th local time. In the World Cup group stage, South Korea will face Czech Republic (12th), Mexico (19th), and South Africa (25th) in sequence in Group A.

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*This content was translated by AI.