SEOUL, Teenage midfielder Kang Sung-jin earned his first callup to the men’s senior national team Monday, joining 25 others for an East Asian tournament kicking off in Japan later this month.
The Korea Football Association (KFA) unveiled the roster for the East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Football Championship on Monday. Coached by Paulo Bento, South Korea will face China, Hong Kong and host Japan in the four-nation, round-robin tournament from July 19 to 27.
Bento mostly named players based in South Korea’s K League, with a couple of players from the Chinese and Japanese leagues also getting the call. Because this tournament doesn’t fall during an official FIFA international window, clubs aren’t obligated to release their players for the occasion — hence the absence of Europe-based stars.
The EAFF event will be an opportunity for those Asia-based players to state their case for inclusion on the FIFA World Cup team in November. There will be precious few spots available for them, as several European league players, such as Son Heung-min of Tottenham Hotspur, are expected to make up the bulk of the squad.
Kang, the 19-year-old midfielder for FC Seoul, will be the youngest South Korean player at the EAFF tournament. He is one of five players to receive a senior international callup for the first time.
Kang had previously appeared in seven matches for the under-17 national team and one match for the under-20 squad.
Another rookie, Suwon FC midfielder Lee Ki-hyuk, is even rawer than Kang, with no international appearance in any age group previously.
The only two overseas-based players are Shandong Taishan FC’s Son Jun-ho and Gamba Osaka’s Kwon Kyung-won. While Kwon has been a consistent presence for Bento’s defense corps, Son, the 2020 K League 1 MVP for Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, earned his first callup since September last year.
Also making the team is midfielder Hwang In-beom, whose temporary contract with FC Seoul expired at the end of last month and whose status with the original Russian club, Rubin Kazan, is in limbo following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He has been a go-to midfielder on Bento’s watch.
Other players with international experience are: Ulsan Hyundai FC goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo, Ulsan center back Kim Young-gwon and Gimcheon Sangmu FC midfielder Kwon Chang-hoon. Two emerging attackers, Cho Gue-sung of Gimcheon and Cho Young-wook of FC Seoul, are the only two forwards for South Korea.
South Korea will go for their fourth consecutive EAFF title and their sixth overall in nine tries.
Some members of the national team will be part of Team K League, which will face Tottenham Hotspur in an exhibition match in Seoul on Wednesday. All 12 K League 1 clubs will play Saturday, and the national team will fly to Japan on Sunday without holding training camp here.
Source: Yonhap News Agency