Son Heung-min says South Korea's squad has settled its differences
South Korea captain Son Heung-min and four teammates say they have talked through their differences, and deny that anyone threatened to quit the national team.
South Korea's dressing-room drama may finally be over. Captain Son Heung-min says the players have sorted out their differences.
Son and four teammates, Lee Jae-sung, Hwang Hee-chan, Hwang In-beom and Kim Min-jae, issued a joint statement on Thursday. They said they had talked things through.
They also denied reports that some of them had threatened to quit the national team to press their demands.
How did we get here?
South Korea went out of the 2026 World Cup early, well short of expectations. Reports of a rift in the squad followed soon after.
On 1 July, head coach Hong Myung-bo left the job.
What's next?
The statement is a clear attempt to close the chapter and move on. The team now needs to look ahead under new leadership.
Story timeline
South Korea squad rift after World Cup exit · 3 updates
What happened before and after this story. Background events not previously covered were summarised by AI.
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