[SPOTV News = Reporter Cho Yong-woon] Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain) was sent off during the A match.

Lee Kang-in was sent off for accumulating warnings in the international match against Iraq held at New York University Stadium in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) on the 6th. In a situation where there was only one card, I made the mistake of making an unwise decision and engaging in a war of nerves, leaving my team numerically inferior.

Coach Jürgen Klinsmann, who led the Korean national soccer team, held a final mock test with Iraq ahead of the 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Qatar Asian Cup. In preparation for the Middle Eastern countries they will face in the finals, the national team, which took part in an evaluation match against Iraq, formed a starting list of a mix of domestic players and European players who had a long break.

Lee Kang-in, Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur), Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton Wanderers), and Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich), who had maintained their practical sense in European teams until recently, were left on the bench and Hwang In-beom, who spent the winter break with K-League players who finished the season a month ago, (Crvena Zvezda), Hong Hyun-seok (KAA Ghent), and Jung Woo-young (Stuttgart) got the opportunity to play first.

The national team, which focused on adjusting its condition before the tournament, showed a bit of frustration against Iraq. From the beginning of the kickoff, Jeong Seung-hyun (Ulsan HD) showed poor defense that could not control the opposing attackers, and was in danger of conceding a goal. Even in a situation where possession was gradually increasing, goals were rarely scored, leaving some regret.

The solution was Jaeseong Lee (Mainz). Lee Jae-seong scored the winning goal with a powerful mid-range shot from outside the penalty box in the 40th minute of the first half. The national team entered the second half with Lee Jae-seong's goal leading the way, and only then did Lee Kang-in, Son Heung-min, Hwang Hee-chan, Kim Min-jae, and Cho Gyu-seong (Midtjylland) enter the game.

The focus was on Lee Kang-in. Lee Kang-in was the last to join the national team, but returned with the spirit of victory. He led the team to victory by scoring the winning goal against Toulouse in the 2023-24 French Super Cup (Tropez des Champions) held on the 4th. Lee Kang-in, who scored the first goal in the 3rd minute of the first half, enjoyed double honors by being selected as the Most Valuable Player (MOM) of the game.

As Lee Kang-in boasted of his good condition through the Super Cup, it was expected that he would be a great help to Klinsmann in his quest to conquer the Asian Cup. Korea has not won the Asian Cup for 64 years, highlighting the need for a winning mentality. At this time, the addition of Lee Kang-in, who experienced victory and will bring good energy to the team, further heightened the national team's atmosphere.

Lee Kang-in was definitely light. As soon as he entered the second half, he moved actively and showed off his sharp kicking power. He also handled set pieces and provided the attackers with a variety of attack routes. Thanks to Lee Kang-in, who led Klinsmann's attack, the national team was able to protect Lee Jae-seong's first goal until the second half.

In this process, Lee Kang-in was sent off. In the 41st minute of the second half, he got into a fight with Iraq's Ahmed Yahia during a contest. Yahia, who was excited, did something senseless by hitting Lee Kang-in in the face. Lee Kang-in also responded strongly by pushing his opponent. When the two collided, the referee gave everyone a yellow card. Lee Kang-in, who previously had one card, had to leave the ground due to accumulated warnings.

This is an unfair decision for Lee Kang-in. It was the opponent who got excited first and used his hands as weapons. From Lee Kang-in's perspective, the referee sent him off for not holding back after being hit. Still, some point out whether there was a need to continue an unnecessary war of nerves in a situation where there was already one card. It's a scene that could well be seen in the Asian Cup. Even then, the referees' judgments could fluctuate, so it was evaluated as a good preventive measure.

It’s been a long time since I was sent off from an international match. The Korea Football Association said, "It has been 7 years and 3 months since Hong Jeong-ho was sent off for accumulating warnings in a match against Qatar in the final Asian qualifier for the Russian World Cup held in Suwon in October 2016 that a Korean player was sent off from an international match." After 96 international matches, Korea was outnumbered due to a red card issue. In addition, Lee Kang-in was recorded as the 45th Korean player ever to be ejected.

Despite Lee Kang-in's departure, Korea defeated Iraq. The team continued to perform well ahead of the Asian Cup. Since the 0-0 draw against Wales in September last year, they have been undefeated (6 wins, 1 draw) and undefeated in 7 consecutive A matches. This is tied for 3rd most consecutive undefeated matches in A-match history in Korean soccer.

Korea won 1-0 against Iraq thanks to Lee Jae-sung's first-half winning goal. Since the 0-0 draw against Wales in September last year, they have recorded 7 consecutive international matches without conceding a goal (6 wins, 1 draw). This record is tied for 3rd place in all-time A matches. To date, the longest consecutive game without conceding a goal is 10 consecutive games, from the East Asian Cup match against North Korea in August 2015 under coach Uli Stielike to the forfeit win against Kuwait in the World Cup qualifiers in March 2016. Second place is the 8 games under coach Han Hong-ki in 1970, and third place is under coach Ham Heung-cheol in 1978 and coach Lee Hoe-taek in 1989.

After completing the final mock exam through the Iraq War, Korea will enter Qatar, the site of the decisive battle, on the 10th. After four days of final preparation, the team will play its first match in Group E against Bahrain on the 15th. Bahrain is led by Fiji coach Juan Antonio from Argentina, and 23 of the 26 finalists are domestic. There is only one European player, striker Yusuf Helal, who plays for Mleda Boleslav in the Czech First Division. Boundaries are needed.

After the Bahrain match, the second match will be played against Jordan on the 16th, and the final match of the group stage will be against coach Kim Pang-gon's Malaysia on the 25th.