KlinsmannHo MF Hong Hyun-Seok “Long distance traveling, it’s okay to be young”

South Korean national team midfielder Hong Hyun-seok (24), who plays for Belgian professional soccer club Gent, said he doesn’t mind traveling long distances as part of the national team’s schedule and is willing to run nonstop until the 2026 North and Central American World Cup.

“It’s exciting and refreshing to have the opportunity to play in a World Cup qualifier that I’ve only watched on TV,” Hong told reporters before the team’s training session at Mokdong Stadium in Seoul on Thursday.

Hong Hyun-seok, who helped Hwang Sun-hong win a gold medal at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games in September and October, has been called up by Germany coach Jürgen Klinsmann for every A-match since June.

“The World Cup qualifiers are more important than the trials, and you have to be more focused because one mistake directly affects the outcome,” said Hong, who was playing his first World Cup qualifier after only four friendlies with the senior national team.

“Defensively, we need to face our opponents and win contested situations. Even if we go to the World Cup final qualifiers or the main tournament, it will be the most important because there are many physically strong opponents.”

The team has been energized by the inclusion of several members from the Hangzhou Asian Games, including Hong Hyun-seok. 카지노사이트 It’s a repeat of the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games gold medal team that went on to dominate the senior national team, including at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Jakarta midfielder Hwang In-beom (Zvezda) praised Hong Hyun-seok and Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain) in an interview the day before and said he was encouraged by the performance of the juniors.

Hong Hyun-seok said, “I don’t particularly think about which generation is the mainstay or anything like that. It doesn’t matter to me who is the ace,” he said, emphasizing that he is focused on going to the World Cup.

“I’m very honored, but I still have a long way to go to catch up with my brother,” he said. “I have a lot to work on, whether it’s my shooting, my lateral kicks, my decompression, or my first touch. It will take me a long time to catch up with him,” he said modestly.

With his busiest year as a soccer player, where he was also a starter for his club Hent, there was naturally a lot of traveling back and forth from Europe to Korea, but Hong was happy.

“I’m a little tired, but it’s not too hard. I think older brothers (Son) Heung-min and (Kim) Min-jae, who have been doing this for years, are really great,” he said, adding, “I’m still young, so it’s okay.” 바카라사이트