After a long and difficult period of injuries, In-beom Hwang is fully available again at Feyenoord. Last weekend against SC Heerenveen, the midfielder played the full ninety minutes for the first time this season. With his return, the South Korean hopes to contribute to the recovery of the sporting form of the Rotterdam team.
”I have been out of action a lot not only this season, but also last season. Almost a whole year. That’s a real shame, because I couldn’t help the team,” Hwang says in conversation with ESPN. ”I feel really good again, finally I’m becoming the Hwang that people know. Of course it’s not 100% yet, because I still have to work on my fitness. But it’s getting a little better every day.”
In addition to Hwang, several players at Feyenoord also had to deal with injury problems. ”I can only explain my own injury. I had an injury and then I worked hard to get back. Of course, as a player you don’t want to be out for too long, so you push yourself. And then something happened on the other side of my body. I have learned to be smarter about my recovery.”
Against SC Heerenveen, Hwang completed the entire match for the first time in a long time. “That is very important,” said 29-year-old Hwang. ”It had been almost nine months since I had played a full match, so this was a huge step for my fitness. The next matches will only go better. It’s not perfect yet, so I’m working very hard.”
Hwang will face stiff competition in midfield in the coming period, with Jakub Moder and Oussama Targhalline also returning. “It’s tough sometimes, we have a lot of good players in midfield. But it’s also a good motivation to keep pushing and get better. I don’t know who will play in the coming games, but we have to stick to the coach’s plan. Then everything will be fine, whoever is in midfield.”
Hwang already took part in the World Cup in 2022 and he wants to experience the global final tournament again in 2026. South Korea has been drawn with South Africa, Mexico and a play-off winner for the upcoming World Cup. ”Of course it is a great competition and a dream to participate in it. But last year I thought: if you want to reach the World Cup, you have to be fit. That didn’t work out then. So now I just focus on my fitness. I know that if I can play my game, I can be very valuable to Feyenoord and my country.”
