‘Enjoy’ rather than burden… ‘Golden Generation’ Ji So-yeon ahead of the last World Cup “I want to score a field goal”

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• on Jul 03, 2023

“I hope you enjoy it rather than being burdened. I want to score a field goal.”

The women’s national soccer team, led by coach Colin Bell, accelerated its preparation for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand at the Paju National Soccer Team Training Center (NFC) on the 3rd. The 31 players who were summoned in turn from the 18th to the 23rd of last month shed beads of sweat while digesting ‘high-intensity’ training for over two weeks.

Belho plans to announce the final list of 23 players who will participate in the World Cup before the World Cup launch ceremony and evaluation match against Haiti on the 8th at the Seoul World Cup Stadium.

Departure for the final round (July 10) is a week away, and Colombia and the first leg of the group stage (July 25) are about three weeks away. Ji So-yeon, who had undergone intensive training despite the monsoon rain as well as the scorching heat of over 35 degrees, met with reporters prior to training on the morning of the 3rd and said, “You know from watching the training, but it is not easy to run in hot weather. But you have to overcome the hard process. The World Cup is more difficult,” he said. “European players are strong and fast. Physical is also good. The key is to press at high intensity and how far we can run at that intensity,” she said.메이저놀이터

Director Bell, who shouts ‘stronger’, is approaching the intensity he wants. Athletes are also adapting to high-intensity training and feeling the rising condition. Ji So-yeon said, “I can feel the World Cup fever as each week passes. It’s been two weeks since the convocation, and during that time, I’ve been training intensely. The upcoming warm-up against Haiti will be a time to check whether we are getting stronger at some point. You will also be able to know how to prepare for the game against Colombia,” he said. The atmosphere is good too. The director is also satisfied,” he said.

It is likely to be the last World Cup of the ‘Golden Generation’. Ji So-yeon, along with Cho So-hyun and Jang Seul-gi, led the ‘revival period’ of women’s football by leading Korean women’s football to reach 3rd place, the highest ranking in history, at the U-20 Women’s World Cup held in Germany in 2010.

Ji So-yeon said, “About half of the players summoned here are players who have been working together for more than 10 years. Now I know what to do even without speaking. This is the last World Cup for anyone. I have matured more than 10 years ago, and the director guided me well so that I could have a winning mentality in a good direction. There are no major injuries. I am looking forward to it a lot and I want to go to Australia quickly.”

The women’s national team played evaluation matches with numerous foreign teams after coach Bell took the helm. So, expectations are bound to be higher. Ji So-yeon said, “For players, the World Cup is a dream itself. I hope all players play for their dreams. In the meantime, I went to the game with a sense of pressure, but I hope you enjoy it this time,” she said sincerely.

For Ji So-yeon, this World Cup is the third stage in her career. It might be ‘Last Dance’. Having experienced the 2015 Canadian competition and the 2019 French competition, he said, “I want to go as high as possible than in 2019. Of course I am ready for that. Please take a look. “How we play a great game,” he said, emphasizing, “In the World Cup, there are only penalty kick (PK) goals. I scored a lot of goals, but I will try to be greedy for a great field goal in the World Cup.”

Haiti is a ‘fictitious Colombia’. Ji So-yeon said, “There are 4 to 5 high-level players in Colombia. I’m watching and analyzing the game, but the defensive organization isn’t perfect yet. Ramirez is a threat, but rather than one-on-one, he needs to team up and launch concise attacks with quick counterattacks. It depends on how intensely we press the opponent.”

In addition, with the increasing popularity of ‘women’s soccer’, the evaluation match against Haiti also hoped for infinite support. Ji So-yeon said, “I want as many people to come to the stadium as possible and give strength to the players. The place is Seoul, and I’m looking forward to it because it’s Saturday. And I hope many people will promote it with a sense of responsibility.”

On this day, Bellho had 30 players in the morning training, excluding Son Hwa-yeon, who was in poor condition.