‘ATM’ director Hong Myung-bo on Simeone: “He’s a world-class director… it’s an honor to play against him”
Ulsan Hyundai head coach Hong Myung-bo has expressed his respect for Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone.
Team K-League and Atletico Madrid (Spain) will play a friendly match at 8 p.m. on July 27 at the Seoul World Cup Stadium. Team K-League’s all-star roster consists of 11 fans voted by fans and 11 picks selected by the coaching staff. The 22-man roster includes a number of players representing the K League, including Sejingya (Daegu FC), Lee Seung-woo (Suwon FC), Baek Seung-ho (Jeonbuk Hyundai), and Cho Hyun-woo (Ulsan Hyundai).
“It’s not a fight between me and the coach, he has his own philosophy and I have mine, so it’s not that important,” said Hong Myung-bo, who leads Team K League. Obviously, they’re here to play preseason, and we’re here to play an all-star team. The objective is different, but it’s the same, to play a game of soccer,” he said, adding, “Simeone is a very famous coach in the world, and it’s an honor to be able to play against him.”
It’s an event match, but it’s more than that. “I think it’s an important game to look to the future, to give dreams to young people in the future,” said Hong, who has been involved with events like the All-Star Game since his playing days. The All-Star Game is played by the most skilled and popular players in the league. There’s a lot of interest in it, and I think it’s a great event game that can generate a lot of buzz.”
It’s also a big deal for the players. Simeone is a world-class coach, and Atletico is home to some of the biggest names in the game, including Antoine Griezmann, Joao Felix, and Alvaro Morata. It’s a one-off match, but it will be a great experience for the players.
Sejingya, who was voted to Team K League by the fans, said, “I think my performance in the last All-Star Game and the expectation that I can play a big part in this game. I’ll do my best.” “Atletico’s players are all high quality. If I had to choose one, I would like to play with Griezmann, it would be a new experience for me and an honor to see him up close. Griezmann is a player who dribbles a lot, so it would be a new experience (for me).”
“I hadn’t really thought about it, but Griezmann is there, and I’ve seen him play a lot, and I’ve seen him play for Barcelona. I’ve watched a lot of Atletico games, and I think he’s a really good player.”
Here’s a one-on-one with Team K-League head coach Hong Myung-bo, Se Jing-ya, and Kim Young-kwon.
-What are your preparations for the match against Atletico?
Coach Hong Myung-bo – We are grateful to Coupang Play and the Korean Football Association for organizing a good match, even though it’s off-season. Congratulations to the players who were selected for Team K League. I would also like to thank Atletico for coming to Korea to support Korean soccer, even though the conditions were not perfect for both teams. Thank you to the K League players for their time. Even though we are not competing for the title tomorrow, I personally hope that the players of Team K-League will play with the pride of being selected for this team and the pride of representing the K-League. We don’t want any injuries in this game, but we want to play a passionate and impressive game for the many fans who support the K League.
Kim Young-kwon – I agree with the coach. The players who have been selected are the best players in the K League, and they have the ability. Tomorrow is an event match, so it’s important that we don’t get injured. We’ll have a lot of spectators tomorrow, and we’ll do our best to repay them on the field.
Sejingya – I’m happy and grateful to be selected as an All-Star again. I’ve done it before, but I’m really grateful that the fans voted for me. It’s going to be a great experience. I’m in the company of so many stars, and I’ll do my best to give back the love I’ve received from the fans.
-You have a lot of history with event matches, what does this one mean to you?
Hong Myung-bo-I think it’s an important game to look to the future, to give young kids a dream for the future. The All-Star Game is played by the most skilled and popular players in the league. There is a lot of interest in the game, and I think it’s a good event game that can generate a boom. From my experience, in Japan, they have an all-star game between foreign and domestic players, and in the United States, the all-star game is an important sporting event. In Korea, too, the K League has been doing all-star games, but nowadays, overseas teams come in and play against K League teams. So I hope that the All-Star Game will be a game that doesn’t just stop at the All-Star Game. Playing too loose is never (appropriate) at this point in time. If it was a tight schedule in the K League, it would be a little bit, but we were well rested. They should be able to play 45 minutes. We’ve seen that the players are in good shape. We’ll have to think about it, but we’ll prepare well so that we can play with a good performance.
-Choi Won-kwon, coach of Daegu, on the players’ playing time.
Hong Myung-bo – I don’t want to get caught up in playing time. We’ve had enough rest and we have time before the league after this game. I don’t think one player will play 90 minutes. I’m going to distribute the time as much as possible and involve the players appropriately. No one will play 90 minutes. But there will be players who need to play 6-70 minutes. The reason for this is that we need to save some players for injuries at the end. But we’ll give them the right amount of time so that they don’t feel overwhelmed. Coach Choi Won-kwon hasn’t said anything about Sejingya, but our next opponent is Daegu. I will (play him) until the 89th minute. Just kidding.
-On what helped him top the fan vote.
Sejingya – Honestly, I’m not sure why the fans voted for me. I’m always grateful to the fans. Throughout my career, I have received a lot of love and support in Korea. I think it was my performance in the last All-Star Game and the expectation that I can play. I will do my best.
-How did you see Simeone, who is known for his charisma?
Hong – It’s not a fight between me and the coach, he has his own philosophy and I have mine, so it’s not that important. Obviously, they’re here to play a preseason, and we’re here to play an all-star team. It’s a different purpose, but it’s the same thing, playing a soccer game. He’s a very famous coach in the world, and it’s an honor to be able to play against him.
-You’re playing against world-class players, who are you looking forward to seeing?
Kim – I haven’t really thought about it, but there’s Griezmann, I’ve seen him play a lot, and I’ve seen him play for Barcelona. I’ve watched a lot of Atletico games, and I think he’s a really good player.
All the Sevilla-Atletico players are very good. If I had to choose one of them, I would like to play against Griezmann. It would be a new experience for me and I would be honored to see him up close. Griezmann is a player who dribbles a lot, so it would be a new experience (for me).
-On a player he would have liked to coach.
Hong – I told the players that it’s a great honor to be the head coach of this team and to have the opportunity to spend time with such great players. It’s a great honor to be the coach of this team and to spend a short time with such great players.
-Were there any players you’d like to try to synchronize with?
Kim Young-kwon – They are all really good players. I came to the K League last year and have been playing for a year and a half, and I thought Sejingya was the best player in the K League when I saw him play in Daegu. I also thought he was a good player when we played head-to-head, but I didn’t think we would be on the same team. I hope we can find our rhythm and play a good game this time.
Sejingya – All the players selected this time have a high level. I won’t single out one player. I will enjoy sharing the dressing room with all the players and playing with them. When I play, I will feel like I want to play with all of them.카지노
-Atletico are known for their tactics, what do you expect to see against them?
Hong Myung-bo – Tactically, they are a team with clear colors, especially their defensive organization is world-class. We all have to play with different teams, no training time and not knowing the characteristics of each player. I’m not afraid of that aspect. There is only one language in soccer. It’s the ball. What you do with the ball is the most important thing. It doesn’t matter where the player is from. We’ll train all day today, have a meeting tomorrow, and then we’ll be ready to show the language of a perfect K League team.