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Midfielder looking to win bragging rights over club teammate in friendly vs. Colombia

When South Korea host Colombia in a men’s friendly football match Friday night, it will pit a pair of teammates on a Greek club against each other.

And Hwang In-beom, midfielder for Olympiacos FC, said Wednesday he is ready to win the bragging rights over fellow midfielder James Rodriguez. To hear Hwang tell it, Olympiacos teammates believe South Korea will come out on top.

South Korean midfielder Hwang In-beom speaks to reporters at the National Football Center in Paju, 30 kilometers northwest of Seoul, before a training session on March 22, 2023, in this photo provided by the Korea Football Association.

“Once our match was scheduled and James told the guys that he was going to Korea, everyone laughed and said Korea would win,” Hwang told reporters before a training session at the National Football Center (NFC) in Paju, some 30 kilometers northwest of Seoul. “James said the Korean players were fast and tireless, so he had to pick his spots on the pitch. But I know what a great player he is. So I will tell my teammates here everything I know about him.”

The Colombia match will be the South Korea coaching debut for Jurgen Klinsmann, who is succeeding Paulo Bento after the latter’s four-plus years in charge.

Hwang, 26, had been a no-name midfielder toiling in the second division in South Korea until Bento started giving him opportunities in international matches in 2018. Hwang has since developed into one of South Korea’s steadiest midfielders.

After four years with Bento, Hwang said he was looking forward to a fresh start with the new coach.

“If I continue to do what I’ve been doing, I think the new staff will take a liking to me,” Hwang said. “I want to be the connecting link between the offense and the defense in every facet. I will try not to do too much, but at the same time, I don’t want to feel complacent. I want to stay focused on every little detail, even in training sessions.”

This will be the eighth meeting between South Korea, ranked 25th, and Colombia, world No. 17. South Korea have posted four wins, two draws and one loss so far, and won the most recent meeting in March 2019 by 2-1.

Source: Yonhap News Agency