Hwang In-beom Overcomes Injury to Shine: Key Player in Victory with 1 Goal, 1 Assist

[Anchor]

Among the World Cup national team players who secured a victory in their opening match, Hwang In-beom stood out the most, recording one goal and one assist. Despite struggling with injuries throughout the year and being sidelined for nearly two months after a severe ankle injury last March, he perfectly proved his capabilities on the world stage.

Reporter Jeon Yeongmin has the story.

[Reporter]

From the beginning, Hwang In-beom created multiple opportunities with his signature intuitive passing, shaking up the Czech midfield with smooth Marseille turns and long-range shots.

Then, in the 22nd minute of the second half, with the team trailing 1-0, he penetrated the space behind the defense to score a precious equalizer.

With an exquisite touch, he deceived three Czech players before calmly finishing with a chip shot.

In the 35th minute of the second half, he delivered a fast and accurate cross, leading to Oh Hyeon-gyu's go-ahead goal.

Hwang became the third player in history to record both a goal and an assist in a single World Cup match for Korea, following Choi Soon-ho in 1986 and Hong Myung-bo in 1994.

Hwang was the centerpiece of the victory, successfully completing 70 passes, the most on the team.

[Hwang In-beom/National Football Team Midfielder: I think all the players did their best to help each other, so I want to say I am grateful to the team.]

Hwang endured a difficult time last year due to a series of injuries, and a severe ankle injury last March even made his inclusion in the final roster uncertain.

However, after ending his club season early, he quickly regained his form at the base camp and created the best day of his career in Guadalajara.

[Hwang In-beom/National Football Team Midfielder: There were injuries, but I thought a lot about what I needed to do to raise my own value. I am relieved that I was able to show (that I am still in good form) to the older players and my teammates.]

Along with Hwang, Lee Kang-in also gave the Czech players a hard time with his flashy footwork.

Showing his presence with several sharp through-balls, Lee smiled brightly as he recorded an assist in his second consecutive World Cup tournament.

(Video reporting: Hwang In-seok | Video editing: Ha Seong-won | Design: Kim Ye-ji)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.