Tue, 30 Nov, -0001
Born: 27/02/89, Nonsan, Korea Republic Position: Forward Current Club: FSV Mainz 05 (GER) World Cup Matches: 0 World Cup Goals: 0
Koo Ja-cheol came through the ranks in Korea Republic’s national youth system and at the age of 18 in 2007 joined Jeju United. He made his first international appearance at the EAFF East Asian Championship 2008 when he played hosts China, before the all-round midfielder put on the captain’s armband and helped his nation reach the quarter-finals of the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Egypt under the helm of then coach Hong-Myung-bo, now the senior team’s boss at Brazil 2014.
Despite not making it to the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, Koo played a significant role to help Jeju finish runners-up at the end of the year. Koo then went into the limelight as he scored five goals at the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar and helped the Taegeuk Warriors finish third and won himself the golden boot. His exploits in Qatar earned him a move to German Bundesliga club Wolfsburg and needing more playing time he again transferred on loan to Augsburg.
The 2012 London Olympics was the highlight of Koo’s career when was skipper of the Korean team, where his performance was key to the Koreans’ run to the last four. Koo scored their second goal to seal a 2-0 win over Japan to win the bronze medal. He also scored two goals in his eight matches during Asian qualification for Brazil 2014.
Photo: AFP