Three key midfielders withdrew at once. Hong Myung-bo's team ultimately reshuffled the roster.
Korea Football Association (KFA) said on Nov. 10, "Lee Dong-gyeong (Ulsan HD) has been excluded from the squad due to a right rib injury, and Baek Seung-ho (Birmingham City) has been excluded due to a left shoulder injury. For Lee Dong-gyeong, we call up Bae Jun-ho (Stoke City) as his replacement, and for Baek Seung-ho, we call up Seo Min-woo (Gangwon FC) as his replacement." Following Hwang In-beom (Feyenoord), who had already withdrawn with left thigh muscle pain, this means three central midfield resources are now absent.
Injuries continued to follow. Baek Seung-ho injured his left shoulder in a challenge shortly after the start of Middlesbrough's match on Nov. 9 and was substituted just five minutes into the first half. After examination, it was determined he would likely be unable to join the two Nov. A matches. It is especially disappointing because he had been in peak scoring form, netting decisive goals in two consecutive recent matches.
That same evening, Lee Dong-gyeong suffered a fracture of the right 10th rib in the Suwon FC match. He fell while contesting for a cross from Eom Won-sang in a counterattack in the 39th minute of the second half, and because Ulsan had used all their substitution cards, he stayed on until stoppage time to finish the match. After the game he was taken by ambulance for detailed tests and was diagnosed as needing more than four weeks to recover.
Familiar faces will fill the vacancies. Bae Jun-ho joined the September U.S. trip but in October he returned early from the U-22 team led by coach Lee Min-seong after suffering a shoulder injury during training in Saudi Arabia. Seo Min-woo was also called up as a replacement for Hwang In-beom on the September U.S. trip, had been out of consideration for a while, and will now wear the Taegeuk mark again.
The A team led by coach Hong Myung-bo gathered on Nov. 10 at the Korea Football Center in Cheonan, Chungnam, to begin preparations for the two Nov. A matches. Korea will play Bolivia at Daejeon World Cup Stadium on Nov. 14 and Ghana at Seoul World Cup Stadium on Nov. 18 in friendly matches. It is the final A match of the year and a testing ground as the team looks toward the 2026 CONCACAF-UEFA World Cup finals.
The Cheonan Football Center is the new home for the national team. On a 478,000-square-meter site it has 11 natural and artificial turf fields, a stadium, an indoor training facility and accommodations, making it the country's largest football-only facility. Chosen by the KFA as the new hub after the contract for the Paju national team training center ended, it will serve as the center for all levels of national teams, youth development and tactical research.
Coach Hong said, "I came to see it a couple of times in advance, and today I see it has been organized a lot. It reminded me a lot of when I first entered the Paju center in 2001," and added, "I will keep in mind that this is a place where Korea's football culture of the future is formed, and start the first training well today."
The biggest concern is still the midfield. He said, "Even Baek Seung-ho was injured and could not join. The midfield is a very important part of football, and we now have to form a new combination without the players who played in the final qualifying round. We will do our best over the three days until the Bolivia match to put together a good combination. I will communicate well with the players," he said.
This A match is not simply a testing ground. As of Nov. 10, Korea is ranked 22nd in the FIFA rankings and must stay inside the top 23 to retain pot 2 for the World Cup draw. Coach Hong said, "This match is the final friendly of the year, so the result is important (to get into pot 2). It's important to stick to the original plan while also taking care of the match result. The result is most important."
With three key midfielders missing, November requires securing a new combination and results at the same time. Hong Myung-bo's team is reshuffling the lineup in Cheonan.
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