With or without Son, Korea needs good start in Qatar

Korean captain Son Heung-min, wearing a protective mask, runs during his team's training session at Al Egla Training Facility in Doha, Nov. 23. Reuters-Yonhap

• Published Nov 21, 2022 10:01 AM KST
• Updated Nov 24, 2022 11:10 PM KST

By John Duerden

Korea is just days away from a first game at a tenth successive World Cup ― that is an impressive sequence bettered by just four countries: Brazil, Germany, Argentina and Spain. That quartet are all expected to go far. But in Qatar, the Taeguk Warriors will be happy just to get out of Group H. It won't be easy with an opening game against Uruguay on Nov.24, Ghana four days later and Portugal on Dec.2. It isn't impossible either. On paper, it looks to be quite an even group, but we are about to find out.

The team is in Qatar now and doing what all the other 31 teams are doing; training, talking to the media and getting ready for it all to start. The big story for the 2002 World Cup semifinalists is obviously the fitness of Son Heung-min. For the few people who don't know, the Tottenham Hotspur star had surgery on Nov. 4 after suffering a facial fracture in an on-field collision while in action for the London club against Marseille in the UEFA Champions League. Everyone may be familiar with this story, but nobody can say, as the player recovers, what kind of part he will play and what impact he will have.

In training, the English Premier League golden boot winner has been wearing a mask. So far, so good, but teammates are going to be gentle with their captain and talisman. Uruguay, an experienced and talented team with an unforgiving defense, will not.

"I am not a doctor. It's difficult for me to say when I can play," said Son from Doha. "I will do the best I can under the circumstances. But it's tough for me to say right now that I will play every game."

It goes without saying that an entire nation is desperate to see their best player in action.

“From fans' perspective, I may be pushing this too far. But football players always compete under such risks," Son added. "I just want to give our fans joy and hope. I am more than willing to bear those risks."

The question marks over Son mean that there is more pressure on the other big players to step up. Kim Min-jae missed the 2018 World Cup, which was overall a disappointment despite the final 2-0 win over Germany as was the 2014 tournament, and the big defender has been impressing in Italy since joining Napoli in the summer.

"I am having a blast in Italy," said Kim. "Every match has been a battle. I hope I can share my experience in Italy with my teammates here on defense. On defense, I must not make any mistakes. I am ready to make sacrifices for this team," he said.

The first game against Uruguay will be crucial for Kim and Korea. The South Americans have some world famous veterans who are about to play in their fourth World Cups. The likes of strikers Luis Suarez and Edison Cavani need no introduction and have played in attack together for years. Given that they are in their mid-thirties, they can't quite be sure of playing every game. Suarez is under pressure from Darwin Nunez who has been scoring goals for Liverpool. The team's biggest player now is Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde. In addition to worries about Son, there should be plenty on coach Paulo Bento's mind on how to stop the influential 24 year-old.

It's going to be a tough game. With Ghana, seen rightly or wrongly as the weakest opponent, coming next. A point would be more than satisfactory especially as it gives Son more time to recover. In 2018, Korea lost their first two games against Sweden and Mexico which rendered the victory against Germany meaningless, though a lot of fun. This time around, it is important that the team has a great chance of progressing to the next round ― which is what happened in 2002 and 2010 ― when taking on Portugal in the final group game.

First though, Uruguay. It has been a long road for Korea to Qatar and nobody wants to fall at the first hurdle.