Following Korea's 1-0 victory over Japan in the Asian Games final, Lee Min-sung, the Korea U23 head coach, spoke in an interview.

On the Captaincy

「I truly felt the immense pressure of being captain. As captain, my sense of responsibility was enormous. I was worried whether I could overcome it, but the players trusted me and followed well, which gave me strength. The coach also trusted and supported me. I wasn't able to fulfill my duties as captain 100%, but thanks to the trust of the players and coach, I was able to come this far.」

On the Injury

「My foot was severely swollen. I couldn't play in the semi-final and felt very sorry to the players. I desperately wanted to help. I recovered after receiving injections at the hospital and taking antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medication. Even with the swelling, my determination to help drove me to want to support the team more on the field. While I couldn't provide much help, I wanted to show responsibility as captain. I'm grateful to the players who kept running hard even after I was substituted.」

On Military Service (Exemption Through Gold Medal)

「If I hadn't won the gold medal, I would have had only 9 days after returning to Korea before enlisting. Because of the military service exemption benefit, this was an important tournament, but enlistment was a very real and imminent prospect for me, so I often joked with the players about it. In such a serious and urgent situation, being able to alleviate this burden is very meaningful.」

「All the players who participated in this tournament had a strong desire to play overseas. I also considered this tournament important and benefited from the gold medal. With a natural desire to go to Europe, I want to work even harder after returning home to make a move to Europe.」

AI翻訳。

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