Head coach Jürgen Klinsmann and national team striker Cho Kyu-sung have expressed strong confidence in their team.
Klinsmann spoke at a press conference at the tournament's main media center in Doha, Qatar, one day ahead of the 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup quarterfinal against Australia.
South Korea, who advanced to the quarterfinals after a penalty shootout against Saudi Arabia in the Round of 16, 홀덤 will face Australia, who they met in the 2015 final.
Speaking about the prospect of facing Australia, Klinsmann said, "We are expecting a tough match. We had a 120-minute battle against Saudi Arabia, so tomorrow's game will be a battle, a war." "Australia is a very good team. They've been playing well and getting good results, so it's going to be a tough game. It's going to be a tense, intense game tomorrow."
Klinsmann shrugged off the criticism. Recently, an Australian media outlet cited Klinsmann as one of the reasons why Australia could win against South Korea, implying that he was a managerial risk.
To which Klinsmann responded, "I don't care about any provocation. If that's what you're talking about, tell me more. It's not a problem at all," he laughed.
Opta, a soccer statistics company, also gave South Korea a 47.6 percent chance of winning, not 50 percent. Again, the coach was relaxed, saying, "Anyone can make statistics."
Jo Kyu-sung was just as bold as Klinsmann at the press conference.
Cho's two goals at the Qatar 2022 World Cup catapulted him to stardom, and his role as a central striker at the tournament was highly anticipated by fans.
However, he failed to capitalize on a number of chances, and even after scoring a dramatic equalizer against Saudi Arabia, he still faced uneasy eyes.
Cho Kyu-sung responded to the criticism by saying, "I don't care one bit. It's real," he emphasized, adding, "Criticism is the fate of every athlete. There are ways and know-how for athletes to ignore the noise around them. I meditate and read books," he explained.
Cho Kyu-sung also said, "I think there are more people who have a positive influence on me than criticism. I have my coach by my side, I have my teammates," he said, adding, "I don't care about their criticism at all."
In 2015, the team faced Australia in the final of the tournament in Australia and lost in overtime. "I wasn't there," Cho Kyu-sung said in response.