S . Korean football coach hoping team will stay healthy during World Cup preparations By Joo Kyung - don PAJU , South Korea , May 21 ( Yonhap ) -- South Korea football coach Shin Tae - yong said Monday he hopes the national team players can avoid injuries with the 2018 FIFA World Cup less than a month away . Shin ' s side kicked off training at the National Football Center ( NFC ) in Paju , Gyeonggi Province , with the 27 players who made South Korea ' s provisional squad for the World Cup next month . Shin said he doesn ' t want to see any more players sustain injuries during their World Cup preparations . " We must not have injured players , " Shin told reporters at the NFC ahead of training . " I believe we will not see any more injuries , but if it happens , we ' ll then have to find replacements . " South Korea men ' s national football team head coach Shin Tae - yong speaks to reporters at the National Football Center in Paju , Gyeonggi Province , on May 21 , 2018 . ( Yonhap ) Injuries have been a headache for Shin of late . The 49 - year - old coach lost center back Kim Min - jae and veteran midfielder Yeom Ki - hun before he unveiled what was originally a 28 - man provisional roster last week . His injury concerns were aggravated over the weekend after Dijon FCO midfielder Kwon Chang - hoon ruptured his Achilles tendon and was dropped from the provisional squad . Shin decided not to replace Kwon and will go ahead with 27 men . " I asked Dijon and Kwon ' s agent whether the player can return to South Korea early and take a rest , but it didn ' t happen , " he said . " A serious problem has occurred , but I will not call up a replacement for Kwon . " Shin ' s team is also dealing with injuries to left back Kim Jin - su and forward Lee Keun - ho . Both Kim and Lee are still on the roster , but Shin said the two players may not make the final 23 - man roster if they can ' t recover their form . Kim and Lee are currently recovering from knee injuries . " As for Lee , we have to see his second medical test result , but he still feels pain when walking , " Shin said . " Kim is doubtful to play our friendly matches next week . If he doesn ' t meet the standards that we want , he is not going to be selected for the 23 - player list . " Shin is scheduled to confirm his final roster after two friendly matches with Honduras and Bosnia and Herzegovina at home next week . Shin , who previously coached South Korea ' s under - 23 and under - 20 national teams , said he is thinking of changing his main tactics and even training programs due to injury problems . " I ' m dealing with some unexpected situations and I have to revise my Plan A and Plan B , " he said . " My original plan was to make a solid team with a 4 - 4 - 2 formation , but I think our training program may change . " South Korea men ' s national football team players train at the National Football Center in Paju , Gyeonggi Province , on May 21 , 2018 . ( Yonhap ) At the 2018 World Cup , South Korea are in Group F with Sweden , Mexico and Germany . Shin said even though his team is hit with injuries , the national players should stay confident . " I hope our players will not be discouraged by injury problems , " he said . " I told the players in our meeting that we can make things happen by becoming one unit . " Shin ' s team will have four tune - up matches before playing their first World Cup match against Sweden on June 18 . After playing against Honduras and Bosnia and Herzegovina , the South Koreans will fly to Austria on June 3 and will face Bolivia on June 7 and take on Senegal on June 11 . Shin said for upcoming matches , he wants to test different tactics and lineup combinations , and he has a few things on his mind already . " I already have plans for my team , such as whether we should use a back three or a back four , " he said . " Our team will not be 100 percent ready in friendly matches . But we will show all of our things against Sweden on June 18 . " kdon @ yna . co . kr ( END )