Stoke City's Bae Jun-ho gets first duty call for senior Korean squad

Bae, along with six other new picks, are set to join the senior squad for two 2026 World Cup qualifiers in June as caretaker Kim Do-hoon faces his first test.

Stoke City midfielder Bae Jun-ho reacts after an FA Cup match against Brighton & Hove Albion at the Bet365 Stadium, in Stoke on Trent, England on Jan. 6. [AFP/YONHAP]

Stoke City midfielder Bae Jun-ho was called up to the senior national team for the first time on Monday alongside six other new picks, joining the squad led by interim manager Kim Do-hoon ahead of two 2026 World Cup qualifiers in June.

Bae, 20, is the only new midfielder pick in the 23-member roster. He joins the senior team on the back of an impressive performance in the 2023-24 Championship during which he established himself as a key midfielderand recorded two goals and five assists in 38 matches.

FC Machida Zelvia forward Oh Se-hoon, 25, also joins the senior team for the first time with six goals in 16 fixtures from the J1 League as of press time Monday.

Ulsan HD forward Joo Min-kyu, who became the oldest player to receive a national team call for the first time at 33 years and 333 days old in March, also made it onto the roster again to complete the forward lineup.

FC Midtjylland forward Cho Gue-sung is out of the squad as he is due to undergo surgery on his right knee during the FIFA international break in June.

Four new defender picks — Ha Chang-rae of Nagoya Grampus, Park Seung-wook of Gimcheon Sangmu, Hwang Jae-won of Daegu FC and Choi Jun of FC Seoul — also made it onto the squad.

Ha Chang-rae, front, celebrates during a K League 1 match between the Pohang Steelers and FC Seoul at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Aug. 4, 2023. [NEWS1]

Kwon Kyung-won of Suwon FC, Cho Yu-min of Sharjah FC, Kim Jin-su of Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors and Lee Myung-jae of Ulsan join the new picks in defense.

Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae is not on the roster as he has been exhibiting pain in his left ankle. Regular fullback pick Seol Young-woo of Ulsan is also absent due to rehabilitation for a shoulder injury.

Over in goal, Steelers goalkeeper Hwang In-jae made it to the senior team for the first time, joining regular picks Jo Hyeon-woo of Ulsan and Song Bum-keun of Shonan Bellmare.

Pohang Steelers goalkeeper Hwang In-jae in action during a K League 1 match against FC Seoul at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Aug. 4, 2023. [NEWS1]

Kim Seung-gyu, who played as a No. 1 goalkeeper pick since 2019, has not been called up since suffering an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury during Korea’s run in the Asian Cup group stage in January.

In midfield, captain Son Heung-min of Tottenham Hotspur is on the roster alongside Bae and other Europe-based players like Hwang Hee-chan of Wolverhampton Wanderers, Lee Kang-in of Paris Saint-Germain, Lee Jae-sung of Mainz, Hwang In-beom of Red Star Belgrade and Hong Hyun-seok of KAA Gent.

The Korean national team celebrate during a 2026 World Cup qualifier against Singapore at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on Nov. 16, 2023. [KOREA FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION]

Ulsan midfielder Um Won-sang is also in the squad with Park Young-woo of Al Ain and Jung Woo-young of Khaleej FC, who returns to the senior team after one year and three months.

The upcoming qualifier against Singapore will be the first game under interim boss Kim, who was announced as a caretaker on May 20 after the Korea Football Association missed its self-imposed deadline of appointing a permanent senior team manager by mid-May.

The permanent manager post has been vacant since the KFA sacked Jurgen Klinsmann in February for his turbulent one-year spell during which he faced criticism for a perceived lack of tactical awareness and failure to win the Asian Cup.

Kim’s squad will jet off to Singapore on June 2 and play the qualifier on June 6, before facing China in the last qualifier of the second round at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul on June 11.

The two games will decide whether Korea reach the third round. Korea are the current frontrunners of Group C in the second round, and the group winners and runners-up advance to the next stage.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]