South Korea announced a national football roster Monday made up entirely of overseas-based players for two upcoming friendly matches.
Head coach Shin Tae-yong announced his 23-man roster for a match against Russia in Moscow on Oct. 7. The team has also tentatively scheduled a friendly against Morocco on Oct. 10 in Switzerland, after Tunisia pulled out of their earlier commitment to play South Korea.
South Korean men's national football head coach Shin Tae-yong speaks at a press conference at the Korea Football Association headquarters in Seoul on Sept. 25, 2017, announcing his 23-man roster for upcoming friendly matches. (Yonhap)
Shin had previously said he would only select players from outside South Korea for these matches. The domestic K League Classic season is winding down and clubs are still jostling for positions. And since K League clubs had previously agreed to release their players earlier than scheduled for South Korea's final two World Cup qualifiers, Shin has chosen to accommodate the clubs' needs this time for the two less meaningful matches.
The Korea Football Association said this is the first senior men's squad built solely with players based in foreign clubs.
Tottenham Hotspur's Son Heung-min and Swansea City's Ki Sung-yueng are among the usual suspects. Lee Chung-yong of Crystal Palace has been named for the first time since May.
Song Ju-hun, defensive back for Japan's Albirex Niigata, is the only first-time selection on the team.
Nine of the players play in Japan, six in China, three in the English Premier League, two in the Bundesliga, and one each in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and France.
Son, in particular, will look to end his international goal drought that has reached seven matches. His last goal for South Korea came in October 2016. He has scored 17 goals in 57 matches, the second most on the current team behind FC Augsburg's Koo Ja-cheol.
That Son has thrived at Spurs but been unable to score for South Korea has been puzzling. Coach Shin said he'll try to create a system that will allow Son to be just as productive.
In this Associated Press photo taken Sept. 13, 2017, Son Heung-min of Tottenham Hotspur celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the Champions League group H soccer match against Borussia Dortmund at Wembley stadium in London. (Yonhap)
"All it takes is one goal for the national team and he'll be a hero," Shin said. "He is a talented player. I think (the discrepancy in performance levels) is because he's playing with different sets of teammates. During the World Cup qualifiers, he tried to sacrifice himself more. I think he'll be better in the future."
Conspicuous by their absence were a pair of former FC Barcelona prospects, Paik Seung-ho and Lee Seung-woo, who were expected to get call-ups after the Korea Football Association apparently asked their respective clubs to release them.
They are both alumni of Barcelona's famed youth academy, La Masia. This past summer, after struggling to earn starting spots with Barca's B team, Paik joined another Spanish club, Girona FC, while Lee moved to Italy to sign with Hellas Verona in Serie A.
Shin, who coached the youngsters at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in South Korea earlier this year, explained that he wanted to give the duo more time to get acclimated to their new surroundings.
"They're still young and our coaches will continue to watch their progress," Shin said. "And whenever an opportunity arises, we'll call them up." (Yonhap)
