Baek Seung-ho (Jeonbuk Hyundai) has been named captain of the South Korean national team as they seek gold at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games.
“Baek Seung-ho will serve as the captain of the Asian Games team,” the Korea Football Association announced on June 6. The vice-captain will be Lee Jae-ik (Seoul Eland).
The Asian Games were postponed by one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the age limit for men’s soccer is 24 years old (born in 1999). Three players over the age of 24 can join as wildcards, and Baek Seung-ho is one of them. Paik will join Park Jin-seop (Jeonbuk) and Seol Young-woo (Ulsan Hyundai) as wild cards to support Hwang Sun-hong.
This will be the second consecutive Asian Games that a wildcard has captained the team, following Son Heung-min, who led Korea to gold at the Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games five years ago. Prior to that, players in their age group captained the team at Guangzhou 2010 (Koo Ja-cheol) and Incheon 2014 (Jang Hyun-soo). However, Son Heung-min’s veteran experience has changed the tide, as he has been able to play the role of leader and bridge.
At the Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games, the team won a gold medal with Son Heung-min as captain.
Baek Seung-ho also has a big responsibility as the Wild Card captain. Baek Seung-ho is a midfielder who grew up in the youth ranks of Barcelona in Spain and spent time in Europe with Girona and Darmstadt. Since joining Jeonbuk in 2021, Baek has scored nine goals and provided six assists in 77 K League games.
His national team experience is also significant. In November last year, he earned his final call-up to Paulo Bento’s A team for the World Cup in Qatar. He also scored a goal at the World Cup with a brilliant mid-range strike in the round of 16 against Brazil.
Now, Baek Seung-ho, who will be the centerpiece of Hwang’s squad, took part in a training session a day before the call-up and said, “I feel the responsibility of being selected as a wild card. I’ll try to get to know the players quickly and keep up with them.”
The wild card, Baek Seung-ho, is also urgent for a special exemption from military service. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t motivated. I’m not thinking too much about the military, but I’m representing my country, so I’ll do a good job,” he said.
Baek Seung-ho, who missed the Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games where he won gold five years ago, vowed, “I was very disappointed at the time. This team started yesterday, but I will prepare well and win gold.” 토토사이트
Baek’s vice-captain, Lee Jae-ik, is also a talented player who has played for the national team at all levels and contributed significantly to the team’s runner-up finish at the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
Meanwhile, the Asian Games squad, which convened on Thursday, will train in Changwon until December 12. On the 13th, they will travel to the Paju National Football Training Center (NFC) for a final tune-up before departing for China on the 16th.
Hwang Sun-hong, who is going for a third consecutive gold medal, is in Group E and will play Kuwait on Sept. 19, Thailand on Sept. 21 and Bahrain on Sept. 24.
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