Klinsmann's "stubborn" reveals same defensive problems
It's not a performance that looks to win.
The team barely managed to overcome the crisis. The Korean national soccer team, led by Jürgen Klinsmann, had a 2-2 draw with Jordan at the second Group E match of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup held at Al Thumama Stadium in Doha, Qatar on Tuesday.
He did not look like a potential winner. Korea, ranked 23rd in the FIFA rankings, failed to overwhelm Jordan, ranked 87th. Korea, which has to prepare for the tournament, has displayed weaknesses.
◆ The same line-up, "Stubborn"
Coach Klinsmann put forward the same starting list as the match against Bahrain on the 15th. Cho Hyun-woo only filled the vacancy in place of goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu, who left due to a ruptured cruciate ligament in his knee during training. He left 10 field players as they were, and the same problem appeared.
Except for Kim Min-jae, the defense team felt very uneasy. The team was pushed out by Jordan, which had its own rough physical fight. Jung Seung-hyun and Seol Young-woo made a series of mistakes due to pressure from the opponent team. Lee, who had been sluggish in the match against Bahrain, seemed to rebound early in the game, but soon regret broke out. On top of that, Park Yong-woo, who played a role in protecting the defense team as a defensive midfielder, also made frequent missed passes. Mistakes were made during the build-up and the team lost in the midfield battle.
Problems were directly revealed in the scene of the loss. Park Yong-woo, who missed the opponent who penetrated the back space in set piece situation, scored an own goal. An own goal was unfortunate, but the defense lost focus. Then, Jung lost focus momentarily on the ball that hit his body, allowing even an additional goal. The defense lost balance momentarily like the game against Bahrain, and no one was able to block shooting. Kim Min-jae struggled in a difficult situation. He perfectly blocked Jordan's counterattack in a one-on-one situation. However, it was just a play that depended on Kim Min-jae's individual skills and teamwork could not be identified.
Prior to the Asian Cup, Coach Klinsmann had relatively stable performance, as he had no point in seven consecutive A matches. However, he lost points in two consecutive matches on the main stage, and suffered a setback. Stabilization of defense is an essential factor for Korea, which is poised to win the title. Coach Klinsmann's decision to keep the same lineup in two preliminary matches failed.
◆ time for change
In the two matches, Clinton`s problems were apparent. Major defense resources were shaken up. Only Kim Min-jae showed off his performance as if he were the world`s best defender. Klinsmann replaced Park Yong-woo and Lee Ki-je at the start of the second half. Just like in the first match, Seol moved to the left and Kim Tae-hwan took over the right side defense, but the game unraveled afterwards. Kim laid the groundwork for the tying goal with a cross following the breakthrough in extra time in the second half.
It revealed the same problem by utilizing the same lineup as the first and second games. Attacks that relied on individual skills were also problematic, but too many mistakes were made in the build-up. It continued to be pushed by Jordan's pressure, causing crisis. If the defense is unstable, it cannot achieve a grand feat of winning a championship for the first time in 64 years since 1960. The limits of the defensive resources used in the two games were clear.
"I don't think there's any problem with Plan A," Klinsmann said. "Though he has been a player for a long time, each player has a different way of finding his condition and rhythm. If he continues to participate in a competition, he will be able to display remarkable performances." However, he was too nervous to be armed with faith. We need Clinton's bold decision.