Yes, it's a pity that the Ki+Kim Jung-woo partnership was never able to be fulfilled at 100% considering Ki Sung-yong was going through a slump mode prior to the WC, whilst Kim Jung-woo reached his peak during his prime, then hit rock bottom and was never able to recover from/was never the same thereafter(That we can all agree on), but that's the funny/interesting part, the very fact that even with Ki Sung-yong being at roughly 80-90% and Kim Jung-woo being at 100% were still able to perform so well at the WC like their life was on the line. The Ki+Kim Jung-woo duo originally started off during the friendly against Denmark in November of 2009, but the decency remained when the duo returned to the central midfield since the friendly vs Cote d'Ivoire in 2010, and all the way through to the WC ahead, after going through several testing/experimenting at CM. It was still a lengthy time frame to be able to witness such a solid central midfield since post 2002 FIFA World Cup, whereas the Ki+Park Joo-ho partnership was only brief/momentarily at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, let alone it only began two friendlies prior to the Asian Cup(vs Iran and Saudi Arabia). Again, I'm not trying to discredit the Ki+Park Joo-ho central midfield duo, as the brilliance of Park Joo-ho playing so well at CDM stemmed from the guidance of Tuchel followed by Hjulmand and Lee Gwang-jong, however the difference for me is not only the fact that Kim Jung-woo is a natural DM, but as well as the strong mental fortitude/mentality he had to be able to provide Ki and the entire midfield with a balance of stability and defensive cover at the back at that time, much like how both Kim Nam-il and Yoo Sang-chul were brilliant at playing deep ball possession that enabled the two to occasionally interchange between attack and defense.
Only with Sangmu, and imo that is also what contributed to his downfall after the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
His stamina is fine as far as it's concerned, at least it's better than Lee Yong's. I still see him better as a LB, and he's shown it at the WC despite his injury, but I don't mind him being slotted at CDM. Of course, however, that all depends on where Bento sees Park Joo-ho the most fit in his system.
I reckon in Bento's system where the FBs push up high, it can be valuable to play PJH at CDM due to his ability to cover the wings in transition. I'd rather play PJH at CDM with YSY/KJS/HC at LB than PJH at LB with KJW/JHS at CDM.
I think you guys are starting to panic a bit regarding Park Joo-ho's ability at LB due to his age, he's only a year younger than Lee Yong at 31, but he's been fine at LB and will continue to be fine at that position just as he would at CDM, he can play both positions just as he is currently with Ulsan. He may not be as speedy as Lee Young-pyo was, but I see no problem with him playing high at LB under Bento's system. Also, Kim Jung-woo is long gone from the national team, yeah you used him as an example, but it's irrelevant considering prime Kim Jung-woo>Park Joo-ho at CDM it's not even a debate.
Oh, I meant JWY not KJW. Also, I'm not suspicious of PJH's ability as an LB, but rather optimistic at how useful he might prove in the CDM position under Bento. If the LB and RB push up in attack and we get disposed, it would be valuable to have a CDM with the intelligence to cover the wings and half spaces until the FB tracks back. JWY and JHS are not good at this.
Park Joo-ho is good at tracking back, so I don't see a huge problem with him pushing up high, and even for his age, he's still the best primary LB we have. Although, I see him primarily as a LB under Bento, he can play both roles depending on the formation and tactics Bento deploys, as well as the opposition(s) we face. Prior to his hamstring injury vs Sweden, he's been getting a balance amount of playing time and opportunities to play in both positions at Ulsan. As for the Jung Woo-young and Jang Hyun-soo issue, as I've stated before, Lee Chang-min, Lee Myung-joo, and Choi Young-joon are options for CDM that we can look forward to leading up to the Asian Cup next year, then hopefully we can get the likes of Baek Seung-ho, Hwang Ki-wook, and Jang Yun-ho in afterwards. Hwang In-beom did play as a CDM before, but he's not that good in that position, and rather risky, even he himself stated that CDM is his weakness. There's also Son Jun-ho as well.
If the names you mentioned get called up, integrate themselves into the NT and perform well in a defensive role besides KSY leading up to thee AC that'd be great, but for now they're fringe NT members at best and it's uncertain if Bento will call them up at all. One important aspect of our team is to free up KSY, let him get on the ball and advance forward. If more attack-minded players such as LMJ or LCM were to be paired with KSY, they would likely take turns covering for one another (as KSY and JYW do now). That means KSY, who doesn't have the best lateral quickness anymore, would have to continue to shield the backline on the counter when his partner is more advanced. I would say there is a reason why our team as a whole thrives when playing someone like KJW (WC), KYH (Colombia) or PJH (AC) next to KSY. Watch this video and look at how PJH positions himself according to KSY and other players He is extremely disciplined, unlike players like JWY. I would be concerned about playing someone like LMJ in a double pivot with KSY. Another caveat of playing PJH in midfield is that he can also cover for the opposite wing which is likely LY who always gets burnt on the counter attack. Watching a few Ulsan matches and highlights, where PJH is now practically just a midfielder, it is great to see his positional awareness, especially how he slots into an advancing FBs position after passing it off. Again, in the previous AC video, watch how PJH supports CDR. This is extremely important, and again, I don't think LMJ or LCM can do this consistently. Maybe CYJ can though. Also, I see PJH as more of the Milner or Delph mold of FB that is great at cutting inside or looking inward for a pass. Although he can probably pull off Bento's high and wide FB if required to, someone like YSY can cover that role, whilst PJH strengthens the double pivot, which IMO needs more attention.
Personally, I think it's better to have PJH be in the midfield and to use HC and LY (or Kim Moon Hwan) as the fullbacks. It gives us lateral and vertical cover to guard against counters b/c the fullbacks seem to simultaneously push up in Bento's system quite often. There's no use in tiring out PJH when we can burn through HC who is not as good of a LB but is a better crosser and has more pace.
Again, I am not against Park Joo-ho playing at CDM alongside KI, and he has no problems playing in either positions(LB/CDM) as well. IMO, it all depends/comes down on who we face to be able to determine when/where/which role Bento will deploy Park Joo-ho in his system, but I generally don't see it as a huge issue under Bento's guidance. Some games he may be playing at LB whilst other times he'll be used as a CDM, so whatever the case is, he should be getting a balanced playing time in both positions as he is currently at Ulsan. The small issue however, is that it's been a while since the duo last played alongside each other in central midfield considering it's only been momentary at the entirety of the Asian Cup back in 2015. Will it still be able to click well currently like it did back then? is one question, and how will it fare against stronger oppositions? is another question.Would've loved to see the duo continue on at central midfield after the Asian Cup, but we were lacking LB options since neither of Hong Chul or Yun Suk-young were in form, whilst Kim Min-woo was a terrible option to begin with, which mainly left an injury prone Kim Jin-su at the back during Park Joo-ho's absence. I've also said the same thing about Ko Yo-han on how he should've been tested out more at CDM more often due to his resilience during the Colombia friendly, but Shin Tae-yong heavily relied on the inept Jung Woo-young and Jang Hyun-soo instead. Also yes, Ki should be playing more centrally advanced in the midfield, and it's been mentioned and discussed numerous times for as long as he's been with the national team(I've also pointed out this issue as well), but a decent CDM/Holding midfielder that is able to provide defensive stability and cover is required for Ki to be able to advance forward and roam freely with the ball. And, you also have to take into consideration that his knee is no longer in a decent shape like it used to, so he's pretty much in the same situation as Yoo Sang-chul was post 2002, hence the contemplation on retirement. Ki is irreplaceable, but he has to be more cautious from here on out. As far as fringe players like Lee Chang-min and Lee Myung-joo are concerned, Lee Chang-min is far more offensive-minded than Lee Myung-joo is. The least, Lee Myung-joo while occasionally seen roaming forward, has been more on the defensive end ever since his days with Al Ain, mainly being used as a CDM/Holding midfielder under Zlatko Dalic. Still, both are options along with Son Jun-ho as I've mentioned above, but if you want a true CDM to hold the midfield, then Choi Young-joon might be the answer. Park Joo-ho, Ko Yo-han, Lee Chang-min, Lee Myung-joo, Son Jun-ho, Baek Seung-ho, Hwang Ki-wook, Jang Yun-ho are all options that should and needs to be tested out.
For sure, hard to argue with that considering how incredibly well KJW played during the 2010 WC. It's just such a shame for me personally that KJW's peak was so brief, as 2010 WC KJW was undoubtedly the best possible CDM partner that KSY could have ever asked for in the national team. Although KJW had his share of bad habits as we all know, he's still been the best defensive midfielder and ball winner we've had since prime KNI. My dream for the KNT is to see a proper ball winner in the midfield. We haven't had one in ages. It drives me fcking nuts.
We've been searching for the next Kim Nam-il+Yoo Sang-chul duo for ages, very lucky to have Ki, yet we still can't find a proper CDM to help him mold into the backbone of our team. We've had hopes for young prospects with the likes of Kim Won-sik and Kim Gwi-hyeon whom were seen as the next possible options for post Kim Nam-il, but neither of them were able to break through with their careers. Hell, we even went through Yoon Bitgaram, Ha Dae-sung, Park Jong-woo, Shin Hyung-min, Han Kook-young etc., yet non of them were the answers to the problem as well, not to mention that poor Kim Eun-sun didn't even get a chance to play and prove his worth during the Stielike era since he's only been selected for two friendlies vs Uzbekistan and New Zealand, benched on both games, whilst suffering an injury that left him out for almost the entire season. In the mean time, both Jung Woo-young and Jang Hyun-soo still can't get their shit together, and they've been with the national team for three years as well. That's three years of utter failure and three years wasted on these two alone. I really hope we can get something out of Park Joo-ho, Ko Yo-han, Choi Young-joon, Lee Chang-min, Lee Myung-joo, Hwang Ki-wook, Baek Seung-ho, Jang Yun-ho.
He just renewed his contract for 4 more years. Our record against Tabarez (0-3) 2007: 0-2 2010: 1-2 2014: 0-1 Can't believe Tabarez has been the manager of Uruguay since 2006. The same year I started to seriously follow Korean football, goddamn. Oscar Tabárez y su Cuerpo Técnico renovaron con la selección de @Uruguay y continuarán al frente de la Celeste durante los próximos 4 años.Ver comunicado oficial y estadísticas de Tabárez al frente de la selección:https://t.co/VwNO9TqlN2 pic.twitter.com/1rbdDlRDAl— Selección Uruguaya (@Uruguay) September 21, 2018
(Minor Correction) Our record vs Tabarez is actually 0-4: 1990 FIFA World Cup - 0:1 Loss 2007 International Friendly - 0:2 Loss 2010 FIFA World Cup - 1:2 Loss 2014 International Friendly - 0:1 Loss That's 4 meetings total, 2 on friendlies, and 2 at the WC. He first lead Uruguay back in 1988-1990(Two years), then returned to management in 2006 leading the team for 12 years straight, 3 consecutive WC appearances(2010, 2014, 2018). He's also the longest serving manager at the World Cup campaign, as well as for Uruguay. This man is hell of a manager.
What's crazy is that he didn't have a great club management career. But he's just the right guy for Uruguay because he's reliable.