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South Korean World Cup 2006 Squad Announcement

John Duerden braves the press pack in Seoul

I realised that I made a mistake in arriving at the press conference just 45 minutes early as soon as I saw the dozen or so television vans, complete with huge satellite dishes parked outside the conference centre of the Grand Hilton Hotel in north-west Seoul - the hotel that is the hub of most national team happenings, luckily situated about halfway between the KFA headquarters and Seoul World Cup Stadium.

This conference was nothing like past affairs. From a usual crowd of around 25 there were ten times that figure waiting for Dick Advocaat to announce the World Cup Squad.

Assistant coach Afhsin Ghotbi later told me that it was 'like a zoo' and that he'd never seen anything like it, even in 2002. For 24 hours, every news program led with the announcement.

It was certainly chaotic as all the tables had been occupied long before 3:30 pm, people were sitting on the floor, cameramen fixing cables for people to trip over. Fortunately, the mood was as bright as the day's sunshine and anticipation was the order of the day.

Eventually, Dick Advocaat made his way to the front of the room, to be bathed in a typhoon of camera flashes that seemed to surprise even the two-time Netherland coach who began with an opening message welcoming everybody before reading out the list.

The faces of the players chosen flashed up on a large projection screen as Advocaat said each name in turn.

Starting with the goalkeepers, the Dutchman got his surprise choice in early doors. Captain Lee Woon-jae is a shoo-in but debates had raged as to who should be the third keeper behind Kim Young-kwang.

Most expected the veteran Kim Byung-ji but there were gasps of surprise when Advocaat said 'Kim Yong-dae', the Seongnam Ilhwa keeper who hasn't featured in the national team since the days of Jo Bonfrere.

"I can tell that you're surprised," smiled a confident coach, dressed in a suit even on a hot and sticky Seoul afternoon.

The main talking point before the conference was which hero of 2002 would be selected on the right side –Song Chong-guk or Cha Du-ri. Song is a class act when fit though he hasn't been that for some time. Cha has been out of form and on the bench for most of the season with Eintracht Frankfurt.

Going through the defenders (Cha is usually a winger but was thought to be vying for the right-wing back spot), Advocaat left Song's name until last and said very slowly and firmly 'Song. Chong. Guk' while looking defiantly at the assembled throng.

No surprises in midfield - Lee Eul-yong 'his name is hard to say' Lee Ho 'that's easy'. And then before we knew it, it was over.

Most of the subsequent questions centred on a statement made by the Dutchman a week previously when he told reporters that he was '99% sure' of his final selection. The media seized upon the remark and had been discussing its meaning for the days leading up to the announcement.

The newspapers and websites wondered if Advocaat was talking abut whether to take Song Chong-guk or Cha Du-ri. Or maybe the one percent was the choice between midfielders Baek Ji-hoon or Kim Jung-woo.

During the conference, the coach may have regretted saying what he had said. He tried to explain that he was talking about the general process and not about specific players but it didn't stop similar questions coming his way – 'who was the one percent regarding?'

Eventually it ended with pictures of Advocaat with the rest of the coaching staff, Pim Verbeek, Afhsin Ghotbi and Hong Myong-bo and as soon as the men carrying the hopes of a nation on their shoulders left the room, so did most of the press pack.

The players are returning from various European countries, each one greeted by flash lights when he walks through the automatic doors at Incheon International Airport arrivals hall, the official song is being belted out at subway stations and every other television commercial is football-related.

It's almost time.

Squad

Goalkeepers
Lee Woon-jae (Suwon Samsung Bluewings)
Kim Yong-dae (Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma)
Kim Young-kwang (Chunnam Dragons)
Defenders
Choi Jin-cheul (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors)
Cho Won-hee (Suwon Samsung Bluewings)
Lee Young-pyo (Tottenham Hotspur, England)
Kim Dong-jin (FC Seoul)
Kim Sang-shik (Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma)
Kim Yong-chul (Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma)
Kim Jin-kyu (Jubilo Iwata, Japan)
Song Chong-guk (Suwon Samsung Bluewings)
Midfielders
Baek Ji-hoon (FC Seoul)
Kim Nam-il ( Suwon Samsung Bluewings)
Park Ji-sung (Manchester United, England)
Kim Doo-heon (Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma)
Lee Eul-yong (Trabszonspor, Turkey)
Lee Ho (Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i)
Forwards
Park Chu-young (FC Seoul)
Ahn Jung-hwan (MSV Duisberg, Germany)
Lee Chun-soo (Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i)
Seol Ki-hyeon (Wolverhampton Wanderers, England)
Chung Kyung-ho (Gwangju Sangmu)
Cho Jae-jin (ShimizuS-Pulse, Japan)
Stand-by
Kim Byung-ji (FC Seoul)
Yoo Kyoung-ryeol (Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i)
Jong Hak-yong (Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma)
Kim Jung-woo (Nagoya Grampus Eight, Japan)
Cha Du-ri (Eintracht Frankfurt, Germany)

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