Czech veteran names Son Heung-min top threat ahead of World Cup opener

Tomas Soucek, the veteran Czech midfielder set to face South Korea in the 2026 North America World Cup, has singled out Son Heung-min (LAFC) as the player he fears most ahead of the two sides' Group A opener.

Speaking to reporters Wednesday before the Czech Republic's final training session at the Sports Arena in Zapopan, in the greater Guadalajara metropolitan area of Mexico, Soucek said his No. 1 concern was "obviously Son," according to Yonhap News Agency.

The two players have a well-established rivalry. Soucek, who plays for West Ham United in the English Premier League, faced Son numerous times during Son's years at Tottenham Hotspur — meeting on the pitch 11 times in all. Son holds the edge in those encounters, with five wins, three draws and three losses in matches Soucek appeared in.

"We have faced each other many times, and it has always been a great battle," Soucek said.

He was quick to add, however, that his concern extends well beyond Son alone. "Son is obviously the one I will be most wary of, but we will be on guard against the entire Korean team," he said. "After watching their footage, I felt that not only do they have outstanding individual quality, but they are also very strong as a unit."

"But we also have strong players in our squad, so we will give everything we have," he added.

Standing 192 centimeters tall, Soucek is himself one of the key players South Korea's coaching staff will need to account for, combining aerial dominance, quick reactions and intelligent positioning.

Primarily a defensive midfielder, he also contributes regularly in front of goal — scoring six times in 40 official club appearances this season. For the Czech national team, he has earned 90 caps, tallying 17 goals and five assists.

Meanwhile, Czech head coach Miroslav Koubek addressed reporters the same day at a press conference at Guadalajara Stadium in Jalisco, Mexico. On the challenge of playing at altitude, he said the team must adapt to the conditions given to them. "I don't want to be discouraged just because our altitude acclimatization isn't perfect," he said, according to Yonhap. "Adapting in advance is important, but I'll be watching what our players show on the pitch on Friday."

South Korea will face the Czech Republic in their first Group A match of the North America World Cup at Guadalajara Stadium at 11 a.m. Korean time on Friday.

The Czech squad, which had been training in Texas, arrived in Guadalajara on Wednesday — the day before the match.

That stood in contrast to South Korea's approach: the Koreans set up an early training camp in Salt Lake City, Utah, to prepare for the high-altitude conditions at Guadalajara Stadium, which sits 1,561 meters above sea level.

Koubek played down concerns about the environment. "Weather and conditions are always a talking point, but personally I don't worry too much about it," he said. "We have things well under control. Preparations are going well. We finalized our starting lineup two days ago."

The Czech Republic are returning to the World Cup for the first time in 20 years, having been eliminated in the group stage at the 2006 tournament in Germany.

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