'Injury Substitution' Kim Min-jae: "I told the bench directly that my calf wasn't feeling well; it's not serious" [World Cup On-site]

*This content was translated by AI.

Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich), who was substituted due to injury during the final Group A match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup CONCACAF Qualifiers against South Africa, said, "I don't think the injury is that serious."

Kim Min-jae met with reporters after the 0-1 loss to South Africa in the final group stage match held at the Monterrey Stadium in Mexico on the 25th (Korea time), stating, "I was fine before the match, but my calf wasn't feeling well, so I told the bench to substitute me."

On that day, Kim Min-jae was substituted for Park Jin-seop (Zhejiang FC) in the 20th minute of the second half after South Korea conceded the first goal. Although there was much interest in the reason for the substitution of key defender Kim Min-jae in a match that determined advancement to the Round of 32, it was ultimately confirmed to be due to a calf injury.

Rather than focusing on his own injury, Kim Min-jae repeatedly swallowed his disappointment over missing a favorable situation where a draw would have secured advancement to the Round of 32.

He said, "We were in a situation where a draw would have allowed us to advance, but now we couldn't even draw and lost. It's a bit disappointing that we have no choice but to calculate the scenarios again and wait."

He continued, "Overall, the game had wide gaps, and there were many situations where we were playing man-to-man while the opponent was open. Since the opponent played with an open formation, I think we faced some difficulties in those aspects."

Due to this loss, South Korea dropped to third place in the group and must compare its results with other third-placed teams to determine advancement to the Round of 32. Only the top eight third-placed teams among the 12th groups can advance to the Round of 32. The bottom four teams will be eliminated immediately.

Kim Min-jae said, "We might have to play another match, or we might not. The players should only feel disappointed until today, and there might be another opportunity to play, so we told each other to prepare well for that."

He added, "Even if it's tough, we just have to do it. Even if the weather is hot or it's difficult, we must endure it to move up to the next stage. We just have to endure it."

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*This content was translated by AI.