Steve Bruce defends Black Cats striker Ji Dong-won after national team coach criticism
Steve Bruce, the Sunderland manager, has defended striker http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Ji-Dong-Won-c18522 after criticism from the South Korean national manager. The South Korea coach Cho Kwang-rae claimed that the 20-year-old seemed tired and out of shape which is why he was not used for
the full 90 minutes.
In one fixture the South Korean striker played for just the first half and in the second game was brought on after half time. It seemed Cho Kwang-rae was still not satisfied with the strikers form in Dubai and criticized the young striker for his lack of
physical fitness.
However, Bruce stepped up in Dong-won’s defence, claiming the player was just weighed down by expectations. He admitted that travelling from club to country had also taken its toll on the Black Cats striker, who had obviously not been at his best.
Bruce said while speaking to reporters:
“It's quite understandable. If you ask a player to go 11,000 miles, I don't think he is going to be in the best of conditions, we realise that.”
According to Bruce, it was normal for a 20-year-old player to tire out after four trips in over the last few months. He admitted it was tiring and that it had not been easy for Dong-won, which is why he was supportive of him.
He continued:
“He has made that trip now four times in the last few months - I made it once and I was exhausted for a week, so to ask him to play football and run around and train, it's been difficult for the boy.
He is only 20 years old, so I would have thought that maybe the coach would have understood those sort of situations, but there you have it.”
While Bruce did not necessarily agree with the South Korean coach, he revealed he respected his opinion since he was the national manager of South Korea. However, he hinted that in the future he could take it easy on his young players.
Bruce added:
“He's entitled to his opinion - he's the national manager of Korea - but I fully understand.”
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