In modern football, the tactical value of a side defender is becoming more and more important, but it is getting harder to find a full-back with outstanding skills. The Korean national team is no different.
Kim Jin-su (31, Jeonbuk), Hong-cheol (33, Daegu), 메이저사이트 and Kim Tae-hwan (34, Ulsan), who have been active as the main players of the national team for a long time, are all in their 30s, but no new faces have emerged to succeed them. Kim Moon-hwan (28, Jeonbuk), who was moderately employed during his time as coach Paulo Bento, is also heading toward his 30s.
Who can quench that thirst? In an era when fullbacks became rare, ‘veteran’ Park Joo-ho (36) and Lee Yong (37, Suwon FC), who had been active as side defenders in the national team for a long time, singled out Seol Young-woo (25, Ulsan) as the next-generation national fullback.
Park Joo-ho, who met with News 1 at Suwon Sports Complex on the 20th, first presupposed, “To pick a good player, you have to watch a lot of things, including not only performance but also his usual behavior and personality.”
“There are many good players in the K-League, but it’s hard to evaluate them hastily because I can’t play with all the players,” he said.
Park Joo-ho, who moved to Suwon FC after leaving Ulsan Hyundai in 2021, spent his last year in Ulsan with Seol Young-woo.
Seol Young-woo, who grew up in Ulsan’s youth team, entered the K-League wearing an Ulsan uniform in 2020 and has been playing 86 games for 4 seasons until this season. Especially since last season, he has been active as the main axis of the team and contributed greatly to the team’s victory.
Seol Young-woo, who mainly uses his right foot, usually plays the role of a left-sided defender. However, his understanding of football is so high that he can play as both a right-sided defender and a wide striker depending on the circumstances of his team. He also boasts good physical condition among wide defenders as he is 180 cm tall.
Thanks to this advantage, Seol Young-woo even wore the Taegeuk mark for the first time in his life as a substitute for Kim Jin-su when Kim Jin-soo was injured during the A match last March.
Lee Yong also mentioned Seol Young-woo first. Lee Yong noted, “There are many talented juniors in the K-League, such as Kim Moon-hwan and Lee Yu-hyeon (26, Gimcheon). Among them, I feel that Seol Young-woo is a good fullback when playing against Ulsan.”
Lee Yoo-hyeon, who once played with Jeonbuk, also mentioned, “Lee Yoo-hyeon is also a player with many talents. He has yet to show all his strengths on the pitch. As a player who works hard, I expect to see the light sooner or later.”
Seol Young-woo was the first choice, but both Lee Yong and Park Joo-ho energized their juniors, saying that a new face could emerge rapidly.
Lee Yong and Park Joo-ho encouraged their juniors, saying, “There are many young and great players in the K-League. How to develop these players is important. I hope talented fullbacks grow and continue to play on the European stage.”