South Korea to Play Men's Football Opener Without Training at Competition Venue

Bandung, Indonesia, MINA — South Korea’s under-23 national football team will play their first match at the Asian Games in Indonesia without training at a competition venue, Yonhap reported, ciiting officials here Tuesday.

The U-23 football team, led by head coach Kim Hak-bum, will embark on their Asian Games title defense against Bahrain on Wednesday at Si Jalak Harupat Stadium in Bandung, south of Jakarta, some 160 kilometers south of Jakarta.

The men’s football competition at the Asian Games features 25 teams. South Korea are grouped with Bahrain, Malaysia and Kyrgyzstan in Group E.

Kim’s side landed in Indonesia on Saturday and had their first training at a football field at Bandung Institute of Technology on Monday. The team originally planned to practice their tactics, including set pieces, at Si Jalak Harupat Stadium on Tuesday, so that the players could also get a sense the pitch condition. However, a Korea Football Association (KFA) official said the Taeguk Warriors will conduct their Tuesday training at Arcamanik Stadium.

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This file photo taken on Aug. 13, 2018, shows South Korea’s under-23 national football team training at a football field at Bandung Institute of Technology in Bandung, Indonesia, fo the 18th Asian Games. (Yonhap) This file photo taken on Aug. 13, 2018, shows South Korea’s under-23 national football team training at a football field at Bandung Institute of Technology in Bandung, Indonesia, fo the 18th Asian Games. (Yonhap)

According to Asian Games organizers, Group E teams will not be able to train at Si Jalak Harupat Stadium on Tuesday due to schedule reasons. Instead, they gave each team time to look around the pitch.

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A KFA official said that only Kim and his backroom staff will go to the stadium and check pitch conditions.

It is normal at international competitions for teams to hold interviews and training at the competition venue one day before the match, but for this year’s Asian Games the organizers didn’t prepare such events due to schedule constraints.

At the Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games, the men’s football competition will be staged at four stadiums, and 25 teams from six groups need to share those venues.

On Tuesday, Group C teams are scheduled to play their opening matches at Si Jalak Harupat Stadium. Due to those scheduled matches, the organizers notified Group E teams that they’re not allowed to train at the stadium.

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“The organizers told us on Monday that we can check the pitch of the stadium on Tuesday,” a official said. “It’s unusual there to be no pre-match press conference or official training at a big sports event like the Asian Games.” (T/ RS5 / RS1)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)