Son Heung-min of Los Angeles Football Club takes a free kick against St. Louis City in the first half at Energizer Park in St Louis, Missouri, Wednesday(local time). AFP-Yonhap

When head coach Hong Myung-bo unveils the South Korean squad for this year's FIFA World Cup on the weekend, the list will likely feature some in-form young attackers joining seasoned veterans with previous experience at the sport's biggest event.

Hong will announce his squad at a press conference in Seoul at 4 p.m. Saturday, just under a month before the kickoff of the largest World Cup in history, with Mexico, Canada and the United States set to host the 48-nation battle.

South Korea, world No. 25, will play Mexico (ranked 15th), Czechia (41st) and South Africa (60th) in Group A.

Hong's team is expected to be dominated by those who ply their trades overseas -- Asia, Europe and, in the case of longtime captain Son Heung-min, the United States.

Son, now with Los Angeles Football Club, is among some virtual locks for the team that will try to reach the knockout stage. Son, who turns 34 in July, will be in for his fourth and possibly final World Cup.

Among outfield players, Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Lee Kang-in and Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae are other national team mainstays who should line up alongside Son.

Two veteran goalkeepers, Jo Hyeon-woo (Ulsan HD FC) and Kim Seung-gyu (FC Tokyo), are expected to battle for the top job for the third consecutive World Cup. Jo was the first-choice keeper over Kim in 2018 in Russia, but Kim had the honor ahead of Jo in 2022 in Qatar.

Up front, Besiktas forward Oh Hyeon-gyu could be chosen as one of the strikers at age 25. At the 2022 World Cup, Oh was named as a reserve and a possible injury replacement for Son, who ended up playing through a facial fracture. Oh trained with the rest of the national team but never ended up dressing for then head coach Paulo Bento.

Some four years later, Oh has emerged as a goal-scoring threat, one of the precious few players who can finish chances in the dangerous area for South Korea.

Source: Korea Times News