U.23 Vietnam must block the ‘strange bird’ of the Korean team

Although not scoring, but Hong Hyun-seok is considered the most outstanding player in the victory against Malaysia U.23 4-1 of the Korean football team in the first match of Group C on June 2. According to the sheet Chosunthis left-footed midfielder is playing in Austria for LASK Linz club and was selected directly by coach Hwang Seon-hong during his European tour.

Midfielder Hong Hyun-seok (No. 8) is considered an important link in the play of the Korean U.23 team. FAMILY

Korea U.23 team, The team is trying to win the Asian U.23 Championship (second time in a row, has started well. Coach Hwang Seon-hong affirmed the potential of the players he selected for the first time to prepare for the tournament. The AFC U.23 Championship this time in Uzbekistan They all play very well. In which, Hong Hyun-seok received the highest score thanks to the brilliant performance.

The opening match of Group C is meaningful for coach Hwang Seon-Hong after he was appointed to lead the Korean U.23 team in September last year and compete in the 2022 Asian U.23 Championship qualifier. , since taking power, this military leader cannot summon all the best players.

Hong Hyun-seok (No. 8) is considered the most outstanding player in the victory against Malaysia U.23 FAMILY

It was more difficult when the Korean U.23 team went to Uzbekistan without any training to shape the personnel and play style. The young team of the land of kimchi really only had 2 days of practice with a full set of players before clashing with U.23 Malaysia in the opening match.

Knowing the difficult situation for the preparation, coach Hwang Seon-hong went directly to Europe to see and discuss with Lee Kang-in (Mallorca Club, Spain), Hong Hyun-seok and Jung Woo-young ( Freiburg, Germany). In an interview with the newspaper Chosun Recently, coach Hwang Seon-hong said: “There are many players that I have not even met face-to-face due to selection problems. It is important to meet and discuss with the players.”

In fact, Lee Kang-in and Jung Woo-young were the faces that received attention while on the national team, while Hong Hyun-seok was never called up to the team. In addition, unlike Lee Kang-in and Jung Woo-young, the 23-year-old midfielder is playing in the Austrian league, not a major tournament, so his name is still unfamiliar to Korean fans.

Hong Hyun-seok has been famous since high school, and after joining Ulsan Hyundai in 2018, he set off for Europe. After going to Juniors OO (Austria) and Unterhaching (Germany) with loan contracts, the left-footed midfielder moved to LASK Linz in the 2021 – 2022 season and was officially played, scoring 1 goal and 8 assists Created in 40 games this season.

U.23 Vietnam team (red shirt) missed 3 points unfortunately in the draw with Thailand U.23 PHUC THANH

According to the Korean press, after witnessing Hong Hyun-seok’s ability, coach Hwang Seon-hong was called to the midfielder to attend this year’s AFC U.23 Championship. Hong Hyun-seok immediately marked his debut impressively from the very first match.

In the win against Malaysia U.23, Hong Hyun-seok played in midfield alongside Kwon Hyuk-gyu and Lee Kang-in. With Kwon Hyuk-gyu playing the defensive midfielder and Lee Kang-in in the attacking position, Hong Hyun-seok acts as the link between the two. Although he did not play beautifully, Hong Hyeon-seok contributed to creating connecting passes in the midfield with a good vision. In addition, he also launched a sharp left-footed pass to the strikers above and helped relieve the burden of construction for Lee Kang-in.

Before this tournament, the Korean U.23 team is considered to depend a lot on Lee Kang-in’s talent in midfield. But with the presence of Hong Hyeon-seok, coach Hwang Seon-hong’s team found stability in the game to confidently aim for the championship.

Therefore, in order to break the high intensity attacks of U.23 Korea in the next match at Lokomotiv Stadium in Tashkent (Uzbekistan), U.23 Vietnam team must especially focus on blocking the link between U.23. Hong Hyeon-seok and Lee Kang-in.