New Year starts with bang for Korea's big stars

Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae, right, vies for the ball with Manchester United striker Rasmus Hojlund during the UEFA Champions League group A football match at Old Trafford stadium in Manchester, Dec. 12, 2023. / AFP-Yonhap

The New Year starts with a bang for Korean soccer as 2024 will be just 12 days old when the Asian Cup kicks off in Qatar. This, as all fans on the continent know, is a trophy that has not been won by South Korea since all the way back in 1960. That drought has stretched far too long for a team that has the best World Cup record of any in Asia.

At times in the past, South Korea has not always been that concerned about the competition but for the past few years, there has been a genuine desire to win. Indeed, coach Jurgen Klinsmann – appointed in February – has said more than once that he should be judged on whether he can deliver success at the 24-team tournament and by success he means lifting the trophy. He may regret those words as they were said at a time when he was under serious pressure early in his tenure for poor results, performances and – due mainly to his preference for spending more time overseas than in Korea – an attitude that was perceived by many to be poor.

Results have improved since, with six successive wins. The quality of that opposition has not been the best, so the Asian Cup will show whether Klinsmann is the right man for the job. Or maybe not. This is a star-studded team that should beat most in Asia regardless of the coach. Few teams in the world would not love to have the big-name stars that the German boss has selected.

Of course, there is Son Heung-min. The Tottenham Hotspur captain has been one of the stars of the English Premier League in the past eight years. He currently sits joint third in the goal scoring standings with 12 so far. He is two goals and three places above Hwang Hee-chan who has been in blistering form for Wolverhampton Wanderers and is a big reason why the West Midlands club has climbed up the table after a slow start to the season.

If that wasn’t enough, there is Kim Min-jae. Fresh after winning the Italian title with Napoli, he joined Bayern Munich. Kim became the first Asian defender to be nominated for the Ballon d’Or, the prize given to the best player in the world in a given year. Lee Kang-in is one of Asia’s most creative and skillful midfielders and has impressed for Paris Saint-Germain, one of Europe’s biggest and best clubs, along with superstar Kylian Mbappe.

Klinsmann knows he is lucky to have such players in such fine form.

"You want your players to peak exactly at the time when the tournament happens," said Klinsmann after naming his roster late last year. "I have a good feeling because they're doing well at the clubs, they're healthy, they're fit, they're ambitious and they're hungry," he said. "This is the foundation for playing a good tournament. When the tournament starts, it all needs to fall into place and you need a bit of luck, too. It's all about timing, and I think we're ready for this big, big competition."

There is plenty of other talent and experience in the roster, but there is no doubt that there will be attention on the stars and pressure on Korea. It means that a group containing Bahrain, Jordan and Malaysia should not be too difficult. The big tests will come in the knockout stages of the tournament when the stars and the coach, who have all impressed on the European stage in their club careers, will get a chance to show what they can do on the Asian stage.