Heung-min Son will be fit enough to feature for South Korea in their World Cup opener against Uruguay tomorrow.
South Korea Head coach Paulo Bento has confirmed that the Tottenham superstar will play with a protective mask after he sustained a fracture around his left eye in a Champions League match against Marseille earlier this month.
The forward, Son underwent surgery to fix the issue and despite not appearing at his country’s pre-match press conference in Al Rayyan, he will be involved in the World cup Group H opener at Education City Stadium.
“Sonny can play. Yes he will be able to play,” Bento said today.
“I think the fact that he would be wearing a mask is not an inconvenience for him. It is rather natural for him.
“We have stuck to the plan since we arrived here and also the way we integrated him into our group shows it has been natural.
“We will see tomorrow how it will be. Our hope is he will feel comfortable to the greatest extent possible and we’ll use the best strategy so he will feel at ease during the game.”
Uruguay manager Diego Alonso also faced the media in Qatar but refuted suggestions his players will target Son’s vulnerability around his face.
Alonso insisted: “It is difficult to answer your question. The question is about Son and we have utmost respect for Son, but they have other footballers and are very well coached with exceptional starting XI.
“The only advantage we will make here is our football. We will try to be better than them and use our players, not to use the difficulties of the other team.”
