(LEAD) Nat'l football team submits another lackluster performance in loss to Saudi Arabia

(ATTN: ADDS players' comments throughout)

AL RAYYAN, Qatar, Nov. 13 (Yonhap) -- The men's national football team tried to turn the page and move on from a recent controversy surrounding rift inside the locker room, as they traveled to Qatar for two friendly matches this month.

In the first of those two games held Friday, though, South Korea ended up writing the same old story, as they lost to Saudi Arabia 3-2 in Al Rayyan, just west of Doha.

The South Korean players were inefficient with the pressing and lacked precision and speed with their buildup plays. They did not move the ball with purpose from their own half after winning possession, while allowing their opponents to seize control with quick transition and superior individual skills.

South Korea arrived in Qatar under the cloud of rumors that a handful of mainstays had not been seeing eye to eye. After a 2-0 win over Uzbekistan at home on Oct. 6, three 30-year-old veterans, Hwang In-beom, Hwang Hee-chan and Kim Min-jae, threatened to retire from international play because they were apparently not happy with the way captain Son Heung-min and his fellow 34-year-old Lee Jae-sung were running the team.

None of the three acted on that threat, and temporary head coach Robert Moreno selectd all five players for the November matches. Then on Thursday, the five released a joint statement to announce that they were no longer feuding and they were ready to move forward.

Their positive vibe did not translate to on-pitch success Friday, as South Korea struggled to establish their presence against a determined Saudi Arabian side.

In the 20th minute, Hwang Hee-chan found Son for a chance inside the box, but the skipper rolled his left-footed shot just wide of the target. It would have been a highly symbolic moment for what had been regarded for weeks as a divided team.

South Korea conceded the first goal late in the first half. Though Oh Hyeon-gyu netted the equalizer early in the second half, Saudi Arabia punched right back with goals in the 56th and 59th minutes.

Two of the figures from the controversy did connect for a goal, with Hwang Hee-chan assisting Lee Jae-sung's 68th-minute goal just moments after Lee had been subbed in.

Other than a perfunctory high-five, the players did not celebrate much, as the whole team hurried back to the center of the pitch for the restart. And whatever chemistry these five players had rebuilt was ultimately not enough against Saudi Arabia, whose players exploited open space to great effect regardless of their positions.

Lee said he wished his goal would have come in a victory.

"I have been playing with Hee-chan a long time and I always hoped we would one day create a play like this," the Mainz 05 midfielder said. "I was really happy that we produced a goal together. But we both prioritized winning and it is a big letdown that we didn't get the result."

Hwang Hee-chan said he wants to win every international match he plays, and had a particularly strong drive to do so Friday, given the circumstances.

"We gave up the first goal and had to play catch-up the rest of the way," he said. "I tried to create more scoring opportunities up front but couldn't get it done."

Kim Min-jae, the team's top center back, said forwards have to help out on defense a little more, and vice versa.

"I think we can all help each other in many different areas," the Bayern Munich defender said. "I think we had some lapses that led to the first two goals by Saudi Arabia. We have to fix those issues before the next match."

When asked about their recent controversy, all three players referred to their joint statement, saying it was written after long, heartfelt conversations and it contains everything they wanted to tell fans.

Kim said he was surprised to see how much fake news spread so quickly despite the players' concerted effort to resolve their issues internally and he and his teammates wanted to clarify a few things in the statement.

With the first match since that statement in the books, Kim said, "I think we have become one as a team."

The South Koreans remained largely rigid in their 4-4-2 formation, continuing a trend from the first four matches under Moreno in September and October.

The clock is also ticking on Moreno, who was hired in early September as a caretaker boss while the Korea Football Association (KFA) remained in search of a full-time manager.

Moreno is signed through Nov. 27. The KFA said in September that it would consider keeping Moreno on board for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup, originally scheduled for January 2027, depending on the national team's performances in his first six matches.

However, the AFC recently postponed the tournament to December 2027, citing security concerns in the host country. And considering how poorly the national team has performed on Moreno's watch, the KFA may simply let the Spanish tactician's contract expire this month and take its time looking for the new bench boss.

jeeho@yna.co.kr
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