Son can play against Uruguay, says South Korea coach

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South Korean striker Son Heung-min will be able to play, wearing a protective mask, in South Korea’s debut against Uruguay in the Qatar World Cup, in Group H of the tournament, this Thursday (24), said Asian team coach Paulo Bento.

The attacker returns after surgery to stabilize a fracture around his left eye.

Son was injured during his club’s Tottenham Hotspur clash with Olympique Marseille in the Champions League earlier this month and there were doubts the 30-year-old would be fit in time for the World Cup group stage . “Sonny will be able to play,” Bento assured reporters on Wednesday.

“I think the fact that he’s wearing a mask is not an inconvenience for him, it’s quite natural for him. We went with the plan when we got here. But we’ll see tomorrow how it goes,” he said.

“Our hope is that he will feel as comfortable as possible and use the best strategy so that he can feel at ease during the game. He knows and we know that, after his injury, we cannot take any chances.” technician.

Bento confirmed that Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Hwang Hee-chan had not recovered in time for the game and that a decision on the presence of defender Kim Jin-su would be taken shortly before the game.

South Korea have failed to repeat their magical run to the 2002 World Cup semi-finals in recent tournaments and Benedict said he would not overwhelm them with a view to qualifying for the knockout stage, taking the approach of “one game at a time”.

Midfielder Jung Woo-young, one of South Korea’s most experienced players at the World Cup, said set pieces would be one of the team’s “greatest weapons” and played down concerns that Uruguay’s taller players would have an advantage.

“We have an excellent taker in our team and we have players who are physically fit,” he said. “We also have tall players, so we’re not worried about height. It’s not a determining factor in football, so it doesn’t bother us,” said the midfielder.

Find out where to watch the duel between South Korea and Uruguay

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