Training Behind Closed Doors: Focusing on Set Pieces... "We Have No Intention of Playing for a Draw"

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The match against South Africa, which will determine our advancement to the Round of 32, is just one day away. While a draw would be enough to secure second place, our players say they are not satisfied with that.

Lee Jeong-Chan reports from Monterrey.

[Reporter]

With movements strictly controlled, the national team bus arrives at the training ground.

The venue where our players are conducting their final preparations for two days, ending today (June 24), is the home stadium of the prestigious Mexican club Tigres. The grass conditions are similar to those of the Monterrey stadium,

[It is hot, and it is humid.]

[It is the perfect weather to win.]

The travel time from the hotel is also nearly identical.

Since the national team usually focuses on boosting their condition the day before a match, the outcome of the South Africa game effectively hinges on the closed-door tactical training taking place here right now.

The team has been putting effort into refining their set-piece tactics under "tight security."

Given that the key defenders for South Africa are relatively short, the plan is to actively leverage an aerial advantage, centered around Cho Gue-sung and Lee Han-beom, who play together for FC Midtjylland in Denmark.

Cho Gue-sung has fond memories of scoring multiple headers against Ghana, an African team, at the Qatar tournament four years ago, and although he did not score in the recent match against Mexico, his sharp headers kept the opponent on edge.

The 189cm tall defender Lee Han-beom led Midtjylland to victory this season by recording attacking points with his head in three consecutive matches in the Danish Cup.

[Lee Han-beom/National Football Team Defender: We heard they are short in stature, so we are preparing well for set pieces and cross situations. I have also talked a lot with Gue-sung since before coming to the World Cup about how we should handle things.]

We can secure second place in the group with just a draw, but there is a possibility of falling to fourth place and being eliminated if we lose, so the team is determined not to be complacent and to win, heading to Los Angeles for the Round of 32 in high spirits.

[Lee Han-beom/National Football Team Defender: I have absolutely no intention of playing for a draw. We are preparing with the mindset that we must win, so I want to say that we are definitely not taking this lightly.]

(Video coverage: Hwang In-seok, Video editing: Oh Young-taek, Design: Seo Seung-hyun & Jang Chae-woo)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.