Klinsmann's South Korean National Team is facing an emergency (1)

The Asian Cup Group E, group stage has concluded.

The final standings in Group E are confirmed as follows: 1st place Bahrain, 2nd place South Korea, 3rd place Jordan, and 4th place Malaysia.

It's shocking.

Not only the results of the matches but also the entire process of every game leaves one speechless.
I don't know where to start...

Ok firstly, let's talk about the most recent match, South Korea vs Malaysia.

Comparing the previous two group stage matches,

South Korea made four changes, especially in the defense.

In the first two games, they started with Lee Ki-Jae, Kim Min-Jae, Jung Seung-Hyun, and Seol Young-Woo. However, in this match,

they changed the lineup to Seol Young-woo, Kim Young-Kwon, Kim Min-Jae, and Kim Moon-Hwan.

Honestly, I believe they should have started like this from the group stage beginning.

Also in the midfield, they excluded Park Yong-woo, who played alongside Hwang In-beom,

and switched Lee Jae-sung from the wing to the midfield.

They started Jung Woo-young in the vacant wing position.

 

I am satisfied with the lineup. 

Actually, the lineup should have been like this from the beginning of the group stage.

I particularly liked the change in the defensive lineup.

Placing the direct and offensive Kim Tae-hwan on the right side allowed Lee Kang-in,

who was on the right wing, to move inside.

The widened space on the right back side was covered by Kim Min-jae, who has a broad coverage range, placed as the right center-back.

Building up with the good passing ability of left-footed Kim Young-kwon

and positioning the well-balanced Seol Young-woo on the left seemed like a good strategy.

It's regrettable that this lineup came out only in the last group stage match when Kim Jin-soo, the left-wing back, was absent. -_-;

To prove that point, the first half of the game was honestly not bad. 

Well, of course, I can't say it was excellent, but...

The previous matches against Bahrain and Jordan were frustrating in the first half.
Lee Ki-jae showed an ambiguous performance,

not excelling in both attacking and defending when starting on the left.

Also, with Seol Young-woo unable to advance deeply from the right,

Lee Kang-in, who was using that space, became isolated.

As a result, even when having the ball, there was no space or players to pass to, so they ended up circling at the back.

Circling around, if they played a long ball, 

it either landed at the feet of the opponent or, under pressure, they lost possession, 

giving the opponent a chance for a counterattack. 

This continued in the first half against Jordan, 

leading to conceding two goals and being pulled into a difficult situation.

 

And I'll try to discuss the midfield and attacking players together. 

I want to share my concern about whether the 4-4-2 formation is suitable for the current South Korean national team.
It does feel frustrating.
I'm not sure what they're trying to achieve with this formation.

Firstly, there seems to be a lack of players in the midfield.

Taking the Malaysia match as a reference, 

they set up a two-volante system with Hwang In-beom and Lee Jae-sung.

However, watching the game, it seems like these two players are the only ones in the midfield,

while the others are either staying deep or forward, leaving a gap in the central midfield area.

 

The scenario I'm describing, where the team is often caught in a situation with a sparse midfield and challenges in utilizing the flanks, is unfortunately quite common.

In this setup, when passing through the midfield, players are instantly surrounded by 3~4 opponents,

leading to predictable outcomes of losing possession or passing backward.

Attempting to connect with a long ball to the forwards, Son Heung-min and Jo Kyu-seong,

doesn't change the situation significantly since both are not particularly strong in aerial duels due to their height.

Even if the ball is somehow connected to the midfield, the destination usually ends up at the flanks. 

However, the team struggles to effectively utilize the space on the flanks. 

Taking the left side as an example, when Lee Kang-in receives the ball, 

there is often no teammate around him except for Kim Tae-Hwan.

The two center forwards end up isolated in the center, and the midfielders, having to cover too much width, cannot always come to receive the ball.

Having just one more player in the half-space could create more threatening chances,

but often those opportunities are lost due to the lack of support in those areas.

 

Assuming the team successfully penetrates and creates a situation to deliver a cross, the challenges persist.

Now, the issue is the insufficient presence inside the box.

 

When Kim Tae-hwan or Seol Young-woo attempts to send in crosses from either side,

the opposing defenders often outnumber our attackers inside the box.

Cho Gue-sung finds himself alone, engaging in a solitary battle against multiple defenders.

As mentioned before, Cho Gue-sung isn't particularly strong in aerial duels.

It becomes a tough battle for him inside the box.

 

It's a difficult situation when the team manages to create a crossing opportunity,

yet there's a lack of support in the box, leaving Cho Gue-sung isolated against the opposing defenders.

 

The recurring pattern I describe makes it difficult for goals to be scored.

Even in the recent Malaysia match, South Korea failed to score any field goals.

Jung Woo-young's header came from a corner kick,

Lee Kang-in's free-kick resulted in a goal,

and the final goal was a penalty kick.

In contrast, all three goals scored by Malaysia were field goals.

 

Possessing a high ball possession rate or taking numerous shots becomes ineffective if it doesn't translate into goals or game domination.

 

The most significant issue that seems to be evident overall, as mentioned before,

is the lack of a clear strategy or intention.

This issue applies not only to the coaching staff but also to the players.

 

Let's discuss the players.

Even after one or two matches, if the same pattern and problems persist for three consecutive games,

it becomes an issue for the players as well.

These are not individuals unfamiliar with football; they are among the best in South Korea,

some even considered among the best globally in their positions.

Is it reasonable to attribute the team's underperformance solely to coaching and tactics when dealing with players of such caliber?

 

I'm definitely a passionate supporter of the national team players, but there are things that need to be said, so I'll share my thoughts.

 

Looking at a few players, let's start with Lee Kang-in.

In the first match against Bahrain, he showed a carrying performance by scoring multiple goals.

However, the games against Jordan and Malaysia were quite disappointing.

 

The reason for the disappointment, especially, was the repetitive pattern of being blocked in both matches. What's even more frustrating is that this pattern worked in the Bahrain match.

It involved holding the ball on the right, pretending to cross to the side, then cutting inside with the right foot and dribbling to the center with the left foot.

The first goal against Bahrain was created through this dribble, but it was consistently blocked from the Jordan match onward.

Even though he's a player capable of executing numerous patterns,

it's not clear why he keeps trying the readable same setup of his play.

 

Next is Cho Gue-sung.

In one word, his movement seems too erratic.

Despite having a wide range of activity, it appears somewhat disorganized.

When dropping down, he doesn't contribute much to ball circulation,

and when moving to the flanks, he often finds himself trapped by the defense.

 

He struggles in aerial duels, and the timing for creating space by breaking into the backline seems uncertain.

His movements to create space in the half-space are also lacking.

 

It's unclear what instructions he receives from the coach, and separately,

it's challenging to grasp how he perceives the game, thinks, and moves during the match.

 

And now, Son Heung-min.

He is the most experienced, skillful, and leadership-oriented captain.

However, during the games, such qualities are hardly evident.

Firstly, his decisiveness has significantly declined. 

It's different from the decisiveness he demonstrated at the beginning of this season with Tottenham.

Certainly, comparing his performances involves considering various factors such as the receiving position, situation, and the quality of the ball received. 

Still, isn't it a concern that the best Asian striker has not scored a single field goal in the Asian Cup?

His positioning on the field is also ambiguous.

While playing alongside Cho Gue-sung as part of a two-striker formation,

he seems to have a slightly freer role, but it results in too much overlap with other players.

You can frequently observe players clustering in narrow spaces.

As the captain and a seasoned veteran, he should be able to adjust such situations during the game. 

However, it has been repeatedly happening throughout the group stage, 

and it's unclear why it's not being effectively addressed.

 

Of course, I believe the biggest issue lies with the current coach, and possibly the tactics employed by the coach (if there are any), as I will discuss in the next post.

 

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Klinsmann's South Korean National Team is facing an emergency (2)