Tue, 30 Nov, -0001
Ras Al Khaimah: DPR Korea coach An Ye Gun has spoke of his determination to lead the North Koreans to a second AFC U-19 Championship and defend the title they won so dramatically in China two years ago.
Then under head coach Yun Jong-su, DPR Korea won the 2010 tournament in a thrilling final at the Zibo Sports Centre where Jong II-gwan scored a memorable hat-trick, including the winner two minutes from time, in the decider against Australia as the East Asian sealed a memorable 3-2 victory.
And An is anxious to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor but he knows it will not be easy with matches against Jordan, Vietnam and Uzbekistan coming up and his side yet to fully acclimatise to the climate in the northern Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah.
"It's nice to play as defending champions but it will be very difficult to retain the title," An said at the pre-tournament press conference.
"The training has been excellent but there are other crucial factors like the weather condition as our players are not used to play in these types of climate.
"The journey from Pyongyang to Ras Al Khaimah has been very tiring so the players would have to adapt as soon as possible."
DPR Korea begin their title defence on Sunday against Jordan, who after booking their ticket to the AFC U-19 Championship as best runners-up in qualifying with ten points from five matches have set their sights on a top-four finish and a place in the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
"Of course, like any other team playing in this competition, we are focusing on making it to the World Cup," Jordan coach Jamal Abu Abed said.
"But to make that a realistic dream we need to start positively and at least book a place in the knockout stages."
Vietnam and Uzbekistan are the other two teams in Group C and they meet in Sunday's later match at the Emirates Stadium.
Vietnam are considered by some to be the outsiders of the quartet but they had an encouraging display in the qualifiers, where they drew 2-2 with DPR Korea to finish runners-up behind the defending champions.
Despite remaining unbeaten in the qualifiers, having won one and drawn three of their matches, Vietnam coach Mai Duc Chung remains realistic about his team's chances and instead focusses on the advantages the tournament will provide to his players.
"We are very happy to at least play in the finals as it's a golden opportunity to these young players to get exposure at the highest level.
"I know our limitations as other opponents in the group are physically stronger than us but we are a solid side and technically we can match any team in the tournament so I have high hopes over the boys," he said.
Meanwhile Uzbekistan, AFC U-19 Championship runners-up in 2008, are beginning their quest for a continental double having recently secured the AFC U-16 Championship against an opponent they will not be underestimating.
"We know our opponents and we have huge respect for them. We played a handful of friendly matches and also participated in the invitational cup in Vietnam recently so the team is ready," Uzbek coach Akhmadjan Musaev said.