Seol Young-woo (foto: //)
Red Star Belgrade’s Seol Young-woo missed preseason due to military training in South Korea, a fact the club concealed, sparking criticism from fans and media.
Seol Young-woo, a first-team player for Red Star Belgrade, missed the majority of the club’s preseason preparations as he underwent mandatory military training in South Korea. Despite receiving an exemption from full military service due to his Asian Games medal, Seol was still required to complete basic training, which he concluded recently.
The fullback for the Serbian champions is expected to join the team’s preparations in the coming days as he works to get match-fit ahead of their clash with PSV Eindhoven on January 21.
The information about his absence and military training was revealed by South Korean journalist Joel Kim, who specializes in covering the national team. However, Red Star Belgrade misled the public about Seol’s whereabouts. Club spokesman Miljan Milošević told reporters that the player’s delayed arrival was due to "flight connections."
The following day, Red Star falsely announced that Seol was among the squad traveling to Turkey for training. In reality, the South Korean was still undergoing military training at the time.
The club’s management was aware of Seol’s situation and that he would miss a significant part of the preparations but opted to keep the information hidden, misleading fans with a January 4th statement listing him among the players traveling to Turkey.