South Korean defender Yun Suk-young will finally report to the country’s pre-World Cup camp on Sunday, after the London-based Queens Park Rangers refused to release him ahead of a key club match.
The Korea Football Association said Yun will join the rest of the country’s 23-man squad for the World Cup in Brazil at the National Football Center in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, late in the afternoon on Sunday. He will be the last player to arrive at the NFC, as the country prepares for the June 12-July 13 tournament.
Yun’s availability caused a rift between the KFA and QPR. Yun was initially due to report to the camp on May 14, but QPR kept him while preparing for a promotion playoff final against Derby County.
With Yun watching from the bench, QPR defeated Derby 1-0 Saturday to earn a promotion to the top-flight Premier League next season.
Under FIFA regulations for the World Cup, the mandatory rest period at club level for players on World Cup rosters is from May 19 to 25 and special exemptions “may only be granted by the FIFA Executive Committee.”
Citing these regulations, the KFA had tried to gain Yun’s release since earlier this month, but QPR refused to budge.
Then last Friday, Korean time, QPR head coach Harry Redknapp told British media that South Korean head coach Hong Myung-bo had allowed Yun to stay with QPR.
The KFA countered that Redknapp’s comments were not true and that Hong had never given QPR such permission.
South Korea has drawn Russia, Algeria and Belgium in Group H in Brazil.
South Korea will play two tune-up matches before the big tournament, hosting Tunisia on Wednesday at Seoul World Cup Stadium and then facing Ghana in Miami on June 9.
Tunisia didn’t qualify for the World Cup. Ghana has drawn Germany, Portugal and the United States in Group G. (Yonhap)
