On June 12, after South Korea's 2-1 comeback victory over the Czech Republic in the first round of the FIFA World Cup group stage, South Korean goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu accepted an interview.
On not being able to be with his newborn daughter
"I feel very guilty that I cannot be with my wife and daughter. I want to achieve something as a good gift for my wife and daughter."
On the match
"We always had the upper hand in the match, but even though the opponent didn't have many chances, we still conceded the first goal. If the match had ended like that, it might have been a mistake by the defenders or the goalkeeper. The forward eventually scored the winning goal, and I'm glad I was able to inject some strength into the team."
On the opponent's goal
"When we analyzed the opponent, we found that they had an advantage in long-distance throw-ins. This is a pattern where they score by utilizing the second ball, but because the Czech team's tall players attracted the attention of our tall players, and the players behind them were also physically strong, even though we understood this pattern, we still seemed to fall for it."
On his recently born daughter
"I video-called my daughter before the match today. Before, I only saw her sleeping, but unexpectedly, she opened her eyes today, and we had a lot of eye contact. I think this gave me a lot of strength."
On the plateau
"When I first arrived, in the first week of playing, considering the shooting speed, it was difficult to grasp the distance, but now I have adapted, and it is no longer a big problem in the match."