[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] Kim Hak-beom, the head coach of the Olympic football team, recently changed his mobile messenger profile main photo to the Tokyo Olympic gold medal. It is a photo showing both the front and back of the gold medal side by side. It even looks exquisite. When clicking on Coach Kim's name in the messenger, the background shows him being tossed in the air by players after winning the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games, with the main gold medal photo displayed centrally below. His passion for the Olympic gold medal is clearly read.
The time to realize that passion has come. Our Olympic football team will play its first match in Group B of the Tokyo Olympic men's football tournament against New Zealand at Ibaraki Prefectural Kashima Soccer Stadium at 5 p.m. on the 22nd.
Among the players participating in this Olympics, they will be the first to take the field. When the football team delivers the first victory report, the morale of our entire team will rise. Therefore, the football team has firmly prepared their determination. Coach Kim stated, "I told the players there is no need to be nervous or withdrawn. Let's enjoy and play stylishly."
Hwang Ui-jo (Girondins de Bordeaux) will lead the front. Coach Kim plans to position Hwang Ui-jo as the main striker and place fast and young attackers such as Eom Won-sang (Gwangju), Lee Dong-jun (Ulsan), and Song Min-gyu (Jeonbuk) on the left and right to target New Zealand's tall defenders. Midfielders like Kwon Chang-hoon (Suwon) and Lee Kang-in (Valencia), who will deliver quality passes to Hwang Ui-jo, are also ready to go.
What we expect from Hwang Ui-jo is, of course, goals. Hwang has excellent shooting ability, knocking on the opponent's goal regardless of position and timing. His recent goal-scoring form has also improved. Last season, he played 36 matches for French professional football Ligue 1 club Girondins de Bordeaux and scored 12 goals. No player on his team scored more goals than Hwang Ui-jo.
He also played as a key striker for the senior national team led by Coach Paulo Bento and joined this Olympics as a wildcard (over 24 years old). Coach Kim, who holds the authority to select players, is known to have decided to pick Hwang Ui-jo a long time ago.
The two have experience collaborating for a gold medal as coach and wildcard striker at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games. From 2014 to 2016, they also worked together as coach and player at professional football club Seongnam FC, so they know each other well.
In this match, Hwang Ui-jo will have a pride showdown with New Zealand's 'aerial bomber' Chris Wood. Wood plays for Burnley in the English Premier League. He has recorded double-digit goals for four consecutive seasons from 2017-2018 to last season, demonstrating excellent scoring ability. Using his height of 191 cm, his downward heading shots are something our team must be cautious of. Wood was also selected as a wildcard for this Olympics. New Zealand, hoping for their first win against us, is relying on Wood's feet. Ultimately, the outcome of this match is likely to be decided by whether Hwang Ui-jo and Wood can activate their scoring guns.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
