S. Korea to face Nigeria, Honduras, Denmark in prep for Olympic football

SEOUL, (Yonhap) — South Korea will face Nigeria, Honduras and Denmark in an international football tournament prepared for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Summer Olympics, a source close to the matter told Yonhap News Agency Thursday.

South Korea, which will make their eighth straight Olympic appearance, had announced last month that they will host a four-nation invitational tournament sometime in late May or June, during FIFA’s International Match days. They had been gauging interest among countries who have qualified for the Summer Games in Brazil.

“The Korea Football Association (KFA) is currently in the final phase to confirm the countries at the four-nation tournament,” the source said on condition of anonymity. “Two matches each will be played on June 2, 4 and 6.”

The source added that the matches will be played in three cities — Bucheon, Suwon and Goyang — in Gyeonggi Province. South Korea are likely to face Nigeria in their opener, followed by Honduras and Denmark. All three countries have qualified for the Olympics.

In Brazil, South Korea paired with Mexico, Fiji and Germany in Group C. Head coach Shin Tae-yong has been saying that they will put their best efforts against defending champions Mexico and European powerhouse Germany, with Fiji regarded as the weakest in the group.

Nigeria, the 1996 Olympics winners, are in Group B with Colombia, Japan and Sweden. They have qualified for the Rio Games as the 2015 Africa U-23 Cup of Nations champions.

Honduras are paired with Algeria, Portugal and Argentina in Group D. They were the runners-up at the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) men’s Olympic qualifying tournament behind Mexico.

Denmark have drawn host Brazil, South Africa and Iraq in Group A. They finished ahead of Germany at the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) U-21 Championship in Group A qualification and sealed the ticket to the Rio Games as the semifinalists.

South Korea will likely confirm their roster for the tournament on May 24 and begin training on May 30.

The Olympic tournament is open to players under 23, with each of the 16 qualified countries permitted up to three overage players as “wild cards.”