South Korea’s Olympic team, led by head coach Hwang Sun-hong, are confident of qualifying for their 10th consecutive Olympic Games. Onside, a monthly technical report published by the Korea Football Association, surveyed Olympic team members in its April issue, and all respondents said they are aiming to win the title.

The survey was conducted among members who participated in the West Asian Football Confederation Championship in Saudi Arabia in March and the U-23 Asian Cup and Olympic final qualifiers. There were 20 respondents in total. When asked what their goal was for the U-23 Asian Cup, 홀덤사이트 all respondents answered “winning”.

The Olympic Team must finish at least third in the 16-nation U-23 Asian Cup and Olympic Final Qualifier to qualify directly for the Olympic Games. The Olympic team was drawn in Group B alongside Japan, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and China. It won’t be an easy road from the group stage. However, the fact that they expect to ‘win’ without exception shows a special determination and confidence in the players coming into this tournament.

When asked who they would most like to beat, the answer was unanimous. All of the respondents chose Japan as their must-win opponent. Japan is a formidable opponent. Having lost 0-3 to Japan in the quarterfinals of the 2022 U-23 Asian Cup, the Koreans are determined to bounce back from their humiliation and return to the top of Asia.

Goalkeeper Kim Jung-hoon (Jeonbuk Hyundai) said, “I don’t need to say anything else,” referring to the symbolism of the Korea-Japan match. “I want to beat Japan more than any other team,” said forward Lee Young-joon (Gimcheon Sangmu). Midfielder Kim Min-woo (Düsseldorf) added: “I think Japan is the best team in our group, so it’s an important game for us.”

The favorite Korean athlete of Olympic athletes is Park Ji-sung (retired). Seven out of 19 respondents (36.8%) named Park Ji-sung. Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur), Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich), and Hwang Sun-hong (retired) tied for second place with two each.

Reasons for choosing Park included “a player who can lead a team for 90 minutes,” “he has no ups and downs, and there are countless things to learn from him, such as persistence, determination, grit, and positivity,” and “he is dedicated to the team and plays consistently.”

The English Premier League (EPL) was the overwhelming favorite of 17 respondents, followed by the German Bundesliga with two respondents, and the overwhelming majority consumed soccer content digitally. 14% said they watch soccer on OTT (online video services). Five players said they watch YouTube snippets, such as compilations of match highlights or commentary.

When asked what soccer content they are most interested in watching, the top answer was “videos created by their team, such as the Korea Football Association’s Inside Cam and club cams,” with 11 respondents. This was followed by “soccer documentaries” and “YouTube videos made by former soccer players” with 9 players each.