For the first time, all 26 Taegeuk Warriors gathered in one place for the first time two days before the match against Kuwait, the first opponent of the “two consecutive away games in the Middle East.”
The national team, led by head coach Hong Myung-bo, trained at Abdullah Al Khalifa Stadium in Kuwait City on the 12th (Korea time) in preparation for the fifth Group B match (11 p.m. on the 14th, Jabeur Al Ahmed Stadium) of the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup.
The national team, which arrived in Kuwait the previous day and focused on conditioning, increased the intensity of its training for the second day, boosting the mood for the actual match.
Above all, it is notable that all 26 players who were called up for two consecutive away games in the Middle East gathered in the training.
The national team, which started 10 players at Incheon International Airport in the early morning of the 11th, had its first training session with 11 overseas players joining from Kuwait.
On the evening of the 11th local time, Lee Hyun-joo (Hanover) and “youngest brother” Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain) joined the A national team, followed by Seol Young-woo (Zvezda) and Oh Hyun-kyu (Henk) arriving with “captain” Son Heung-min (Tottenham) after escaping from thigh injuries early on the 12th.
Coach Hong focused on training focusing on recovering his condition by conducting tactical training on the previous evening and early in the morning, including Son Heung-min. 메이저놀이터
However, Lee Kang-in was immediately included in the 12 normal training group and boasted his best condition.
In particular, Son Heung-min decided to raise his condition step by step according to the match date rather than over-training him, as his team, Tottenham manager Anji Postecoglou, requested to “control the playing time.”
“It is important to see Son in good health. The national team’s game is important, but it is also polite to send players back to their teams in good health,” Hong said in an interview on the previous day.
After completing its first ‘full-body training’ on the day, the national team is now scheduled to refine its ‘quote hunting solution’ through its last tactical training at Jabeur al-Ahmad International Stadium against Kuwait on the 13th.