Vietnam team only defends, Kim Min-jae does not need to play

"It is clear that the Vietnamese team will play defensively against Korea. Even if Kim Min-jae plays, he will not have much to do. The Vietnamese team does not attack strongly and other players, other than Kim Min-jae, can easily neutralize them," OSEN commented before the match between Vietnam and Korea.

Kim Min-jae and Son Heung-min are the two most notable stars of the Korean national team at the moment. The Bayern Munich midfielder is showing signs of being overloaded after playing continuously for both club and national team recently. OSEN and many Korean sports news sites share the opinion that coach Jurgen Klinsmann should let Kim Min-jae rest.

Kim Min-jae is the vice-captain of the South Korean team. (Photo: Getty Images)

"Key player Nguyen Quang Hai suffered a calf injury in the match against Uzbekistan and will be absent. The reason for Kim Min-jae to play is even less. If Kim Min-jae plays in the match against the Vietnamese team, he will not have much to do. Therefore, it is better to let this player rest. This is an opportunity to test players who can replace Kim Min-jae," the author on OSEN analyzed.

Another writer in Sports Seoul commented: "The next opponent of the Korean team is Vietnam, ranked 95th in the world. What needs to be focused on is the experiments, not the results."

According to this article, the goal that the Korean team is aiming for in this match is to test the defensive tactics of weaker opponents. Due to the clear difference in class between the two teams, the home team does not need to worry much about the risk of defeat.

However, some other writers have the opposite opinion. This is the last friendly match before the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, so Korean fans really want to see the strongest lineup of the Korean team show its true strength.

Commentator Jeong Gwang-yong wrote in the Busan Ilbo: "It is not easy to summon all the stars playing in Europe such as Son Heung-min, Kim Min-jae, Lee Kang-in, Hwang Hee-chan, Lee Jae-seong, Jung Woo-young. The Korean team is completely superior. An overwhelming performance and a perfect victory are necessary to satisfy the fans."

The match between Korea and Vietnam will take place at 6pm tomorrow, October 17.

Han Phong

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