Son Heung-min (31, Tottenham), who joined the soccer team led by coach Jurgen Klinsmann (59) for the first time, was full of excitement. From beginning to end, he expressed that he was ‘expected’ for Klinsmann’s departure.
Son Heung-min, who boarded a plane to Korea after finishing the schedule for his team Tottenham, entered the Paju NFC (Football Team Training Center) on the afternoon of the 20th. It was the first call to the national team in three months after successfully advancing to the round of 16 at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Son Heung-min, who had a short conversation with coach Klinsman on the day of enlistment, said in an interview on the 21st, “I am happy to be called up (to the national team) after the World Cup. I am very happy, but I am excited and honored to be in line with the new coach.” “I did not discuss tactics with the coach. I think he will communicate through training,” he said.
Son Heung-min and manager Klinsman have a common denominator called ‘Tottenham’. Coach Klinsman, a world-class striker in the 1980s and 1990s, played an active role at Tottenham. Manager Klinsman wore a Tottenham uniform from 1994 to 1995 and 1997 to 1998 and walked around the English Premier League (EPL) stage. Before joining the national team, Son Heung-min said he had heard good reviews about manager Klinsman.
Son Heung-min said, “(Meeting with coach Klinsman) is really special. There are people in our club who saw the coach when he was a player, and there are people who lived with him. I heard how good the reviews were for the director. He said he was fortunate to meet such a good person at the club, so he expected more. (Me too) I could see how good he is and how much he cares about the players through a short talk with the coach.”
Director Klinsman is also a person with a lot of experience as a commanding tower. He has tasted success and failure by leading the German national team, Bayern Munich and the US national team in the past. Son Heung-min said, “The manager and coaches can share things we haven’t experienced. For the players, every bit of advice and information is helpful. It would be nice if the coach would care a lot for Korean soccer and share good information with the players.”
As the head of the Korean soccer team changes, the perception of the national team is expected to change. Everyone restarts the competition from zero base. All the players who were called up at this call said the task was to ‘quickly grasp the coach’s needs’ rather than being happy.
Son Heung-min also said, “It is important how we adapt to the director. He thinks that depending on what kind of clothes the coach wears, the characteristics and colors of the players can come out well. It is important for the players to quickly catch what the coach wants while training,” he emphasized.
Son Heung-min, who took over the captaincy under former manager Paulo Bento, continues to wear the armband at Klinsmann. Son Heung-min, who led the team for the past four years, cited ‘cohesion’ as the key to cruising. He said, “Director Klinsman also made the appointment after seeing a long period of time (his tenure), so I hope he will not be shaken. He can’t be good every time in 4 years, but he has a lot to learn. I think it will be important for the players and staff to stick together and not be shaken.”
The Klinsmann, which has just lifted anchor, will set sail with the goal of winning the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup, which will be held in Qatar in January next year. Since winning the championship in 1960, Korea has had a bitter cup in the Asian Cup. For Son Heung-min, who said, “The championship cup does not come for free,”온라인카지노 winning the Asian Cup is a dream. He said, “I think it is important for the players to prepare well for the remaining time in less than a year and bring the trophy that they have not brought for a long time. There is no guarantee that I will go to the Asian Cup, but when I do, I have a strong desire to bring the trophy back to Korea.”