Kim Min-jae (29, Bayern Munich), who could not participate in this national team gathering due to an injury, sent a message of support to the national team through the social media account of his club Bayern Munich.

The Korean national football team, led by coach Hong Myung-bo (56), will face Oman in the 7th match of Group B of the Asian qualifying round for the 2026 FIFA World Cup at Goyang Stadium in Gyeonggi Province at 8 p.m.

Korea maintains the top spot in Group B with 14 points (4 wins, 2 draws), followed by Iraq (11 points), Jordan (9 points), Oman (6 points), Kuwait (4 points), and Palestine (3 points). The top two teams from each group in the qualifying round will receive direct tickets to the finals.

If Korea wins both against Oman in this match and Jordan on the 25th to earn 6 points, it will early secure its 11th consecutive World Cup finals qualification, regardless of the results against Iraq and Kuwait in June.

Korea won 3-1 in the away qualifying match against Oman in Muscat last September. Son Heung-min (Tottenham) was active with 1 goal and 2 assists at that time. The team is determined to defeat Oman at home as well.

The entire national team of 28 players conducted their final training session before the match on the 19th, the day before the game. A variable is the absence of Kim Min-jae. Of course, the team will not struggle against the opponent just because of one missing player, but since a new defensive combination needs to be brought out, there is some degree of risk.

In this gathering, Kim Joo-seong, the main center-back of FC Seoul, was selected to replace the injured Kim Min-jae. Along with him, Kwon Kyung-won (Khor Fakkan), Jeong Seung-hyun (Al Wasl), and Jo Yu-min (Sharjah) were chosen, and Park Seung-wook (Gimcheon Sangmu) is also a resource that can fill the center-back position.

Released from the gathering, Kim Min-jae left a message of support for the national team on Bayern Munich's official social media account on the 20th. He left a short but strong message, "Let's go, even for my share!" Bayern also left a message saying, "Even if we cannot be together physically, we send our support in spirit!"

Meanwhile, coach Hong Myung-bo, who met on the 19th, noted, "It is indeed a time when changes in defense are needed," and emphasized, "How the players who have spent this time together are combined will be a critical matter."

He added, "It is a time for change. It is a good opportunity for the team. I also felt that the players are prepared for that."

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