*This content was translated by AI.View Original
Spanish local media delivered a cold assessment of Lee Kang-in (Atletico Madrid), who played the full 90 minutes in the friendly against Saudi Arabia but remained silent without an offensive point. The criticism points out that, unlike the sharp performance he shows with his club team, his strengths are still not being maximized at the national team level.
The Spanish outlet "Mundo Deportivo" reported on the 14th (KST), "A painful reversal occurred for Lee Kang-in, who played the full match against Saudi Arabia," adding, "South Korea has yet to see the peak form of Lee Kang-in that Atletico fans have enjoyed early in this season."
The outlet noted, "Lee Kang-in, wearing number 19, played all 90 minutes under the trust of interim coach Roberto Moreno, but failed to bring a positive result for the team without a goal or an assist," and pointed out, "Even as Coach Moreno activated his substitution cards in the second half, Lee Kang-in stayed on the pitch until the end, but he could not directly contribute to South Korea's two goals, only fueling fans' concerns."
The outlet also criticized the tactical utilization by the head coach. "Mundo Deportivo" stated, "Korean media had been criticizing before the match that the new Spanish-born head coach had failed to fully leverage Lee Kang-in's strengths in previous games," and added, "This match was no different. South Korea was overwhelmed against Saudi Arabia, a team that is difficult to consider a world-class powerhouse at present, exposing wildly inconsistent performance similar to the previous international break."
In fact, under the regime of Coach Moreno, who took over as interim head coach in September last year, Lee Kang-in appeared in all four matches from the game against Uruguay through this match against Saudi Arabia, but he failed to demonstrate the expected destructive power amid the national team's overall inconsistency. The Moreno squad secured a 3-0 comprehensive victory in their debut match against Ecuador on September 24, but collapsed helplessly with a 1-4 loss in the match against Uruguay on the 28th, where Lee Kang-in played, exposing defensive instability. In the subsequent October international matches, they continued an inconsistent flow with a 0-0 draw against Venezuela and a 2-0 victory against Uzbekistan.
Lee Kang-in's foot also failed to find the net in the match against Saudi Arabia. Starting as the right-side midfielder in a 4-4-2 formation in the friendly against Saudi Arabia held at the Jasim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Qatar, on the 13th, Lee Kang-in's sharp left-foot cross in the 25th minute of the first half and his right-foot long-range shot from directly in front of the arc in the 45th minute of the first half both came to nothing.
Goal luck did not follow in the second half either. After South Korea equalized with a goal by Oh Hyeon-gyu (Besiktas) in the 2nd minute of the second half, they were dragged down by consecutive goals conceded to Mohamed Kanno and Abdulrahma Al-Amri. In the 18th minute of the second half, Lee Kang-in's right-foot shot went wide, and his immediate left-foot shot was also blocked by the opposing goalkeeper's save. A left-foot shot attempted in the 34th minute of the second half, while South Korea was chasing with a consolation goal by Lee Jae-sung (Mainz), also went straight to the goalkeeper.
Ultimately, South Korea, ranked 32nd in the FIFA rankings, bowed to Saudi Arabia, ranked 55th, losing 2-3. This marked their first defeat against Saudi Arabia in a whopping 21 years since August 2005, and they fell behind in the all-time head-to-head record with 5 wins, 9 draws, and 6 losses. According to football statistics media "FootMob," Lee Kang-in recorded 3 shots on target, 2 chances created, 4 successful dribbles, and a 76% pass success rate, earning a rating of 7.8 points. He received the second-highest score in the team after Hwang Hee-chan (Schalke, 8 points), but his performance was overshadowed by the team's defeat.
The South Korea national team, which has stumbled with 2 wins, 1 draw, and 2 losses in 5 matches since the launch of the Moreno regime, will play their second November international friendly and final match of the year against Qatar at the Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha at 11:00 p.m. on the 17th. With his contract nearing expiration and the 2027 Asian Cup postponed by 11 months to December next year, Coach Moreno's position has narrowed, making this match expected to be his final test. "Mundo Deportivo" hinted, "It will be interesting to see if South Korea includes Lee Kang-in in the starting lineup again for the upcoming match against Qatar."
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*This content was translated by AI.View Original
