The direction of the Korean Football Association's aggressive preparation for the second round of World Cup Asia is questionable.
The South Korean national soccer team, led by coach Jürgen Klinsmann, will play Vietnam (ranked 95th in the FIFA rankings) in an October A match trial at the Suwon World Cup Stadium at 8 p.m. on Sunday.
The Korea Football Association (KFA) has responded to criticism from fans about the significance of playing Vietnam in an exhibition match by saying that it's in preparation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Asia.
With the second round of the World Cup Asia starting next month and the team likely to face either Guam or Singapore in their first game in November, the KFA wanted to prepare for the game against Vietnam. It was also noted that Klinsmann's understanding of Southeast and Asian soccer is not yet complete. 카지노사이트가이드
At first glance, all of these reasons make sense. If only there were 4.5 spots available for Asian nations to qualify for the 2026 North American World Cup. Starting with the 2026 World Cup in North and Central America, the tournament will be a 48-team tournament instead of a 32-team tournament, so the number of qualifying tickets allocated to Asian countries has increased significantly. By default, eight nations will qualify, and with intercontinental playoffs, Asia alone could have up to nine. 
The second round of Asian qualifying for the Qatar 2022 World Cup began in September 2019. However, before the second round, South Korea faced Australia and Iran in June and Georgia in Europe in September. These were not the kind of games that prepare you for the second round.
Could it be that Bento had a better understanding of Asian soccer than Klinsmann, and therefore was not prepared for the inferior Southeast Asian nation? No, it's not. Ventura's only experience with Asian soccer prior to his arrival in South Korea was a seven-month stint with Chongqing Lifan in China.
He could never have had a greater understanding of the still relatively underpowered regions of Asia, such as Southeast Asia.
Certainly, the overall quality of Asian nations has risen compared to four years ago, but the question of whether Vietnam should have been invited to play in their own backyard starts with a resounding "why?".
It's impossible to put a number on soccer skills, but I don't think many people would argue that Southeast Asian nations are twice as good as they were four years ago. Also, even without preparation, the second round was always going to be difficult to get through.
The only explanation for the Vietnam invite came not from the KFA, but from Klinsmann, who said, "Depending on how we finish in our group at the upcoming Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup 2023, we could meet in the round of 16."
South Korea were drawn in Group E in the Asian Cup draw. It is in the same group as Jordan, Bahrain, and Malaysia. Vietnam is in Group D. Japan, Iraq, and Indonesia. South Korea will most likely finish first in Group E and will face the second-place team from Group D in the Round of 16. A scenario where Japan finishes second and makes it to the Round of 16 is unlikely due to the strength of Group D. The battle for second place will be between Iraq and Vietnam.
Unlike the World Cup qualifiers, the Asian Cup tournament is a single-legged affair. Losing means "Go Home. Since soccer is round, there is no guarantee that South Korea will meet Vietnam or Iraq and win.
Klinsmann campaigned on winning the Asian Cup trophy, which hasn't been won since 1960. If the KFA had supported Klinsmann and explained that they were calling up a team that could be a potential round of 16 opponent to better prepare for the Asian Cup, it would have made more sense. But the KFA's story was clearly different.