Park, Lee Will Miss Qatar Match, Say Clubs
By Kang Seung-woo
Staff Reporter
Park Ji-sung and Lee Young-pyo are unlikely to be involved in the national team's upcoming friendly match against Qatar.
The Korea Football Association (KFA) asked their clubs - Manchester United and Borussia Dortmund - to release the experienced pair for the warm-up game, but the request was knocked back.
South Korean national football will play Qatar on Nov. 15 and then meet Saudi Arabia four days later in a World Cup qualifying match.
Park and Lee were named in the squad for both encounters, but have been denied permission to leave early to take part in the friendly due to their clubs' busy schedules.
Manchester United will face Stoke City in a league match on the same day as the Qatar match. Park is expected to meet up with the national team ― which has recorded a win and a draw in Group B of the World Cup final qualifying round ― a couple of days later.
Borussia Dortmund's league match against Eintracht Frankfurt also clashes with the friendly.
Three other members of the squad who play overseas - Park Chu-young, Kim Dong-jin and Oh Beom-seok - will not be available for the match for the same reason.
AS Monaco striker Park, who scored his second goal of the season Sunday, is expected to play for his club against Rennes on Nov. 16, while Kim of Zenit St. Petersburg and Oh of Krylia Sovetov Samara both have games in the Russian league on the same day.
According to FIFA rules, clubs only have to release their players 48 hours before an official match.