Injured defender recovering quickly, will be available in group-stage match against Mexico

On the heels of their opening victory at the ongoing FIFA World Cup, Korea received some encouraging news on the injury front on Friday.

Defender Kim Tae-hyeon, dealing with an ankle injury that some feared could keep him out of the group stage, will be available as early as next Thursday for Korea's second Group A match against Mexico.

Kim picked up the injury during a training session at Chivas Verde Valle in Zapopan, near Guadalajara, on Tuesday, and a national team official told reporters the next day that the left-footed center back may miss the entire group stage — which ends on June 24 for Korea.

However, Song Jun-seob, the senior team doctor, said on Friday that Kim's injury wasn't as serious as once feared.

"The initial MRI confirmed that [Kim] had a ligament tear, but the picture wasn't clear enough for us to determine the exact degree," Song said. "We checked his swelling 24 hours later and determined that it was an average sprain. So we told the coaching staff that he should be able to play at the World Cup."

Kim is one of just two left-footed center backs on the team, alongside Lee Gi-hyuk. With Kim not available in Korea's 2-1 win over the Czech Republic on Thursday, Lee played the entire match and picked up a yellow card in the dying seconds of his World Cup debut.

In another injury-related development, midfielder Bae Jun-ho is on his way back from an ankle injury that he sustained during a friendly match against Trinidad and Tobago on May 30.

"His sprain is more severe. It's been nearly two weeks since he got hurt, and he's recovering," Song said. "But another injury at this point would rule him out of the World Cup, so we're taking it conservatively."

The Taegeuk Warriors were back at work at Chivas Verde Valle for a recovery session. Those who had extensive minutes or played the full match jogged around the pitch before heading indoors for more workouts. The 13 players who stayed on the bench or had limited action did some conditioning drills, followed by small-sided games.

Korea beat the Czech Republic at Estadio Guadalajara and will take on Mexico at the same venue at 7 p.m. on Thursday.

Mexico, one of three co-hosts of the tournament, blanked South Africa 2-0 in the tournament opener. The winner of the Korea-Mexico showdown will be in a prime position to win Group A.

Korea will rest on Saturday and return to work the following day.

Yonhap

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