A member of the Korea DPR side that reached the last eight of the 2005 FIFA U17 World Cup, midfielder Kim Kyong-Il’s hard work and consistent performances over recent years have earned him a place in Kim Jong-Hun’s South Africa 2010 squad.
After his impressive international introduction at those youth finals, the Rimyongsu youngster went on to represent his country at the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada, starting all three of his team’s matches. Given this sustained progress at youth level, it came as no surprise when Kim graduated to the senior side, earning a half-hour run-out against Mongolia during preliminaries for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.
That proved to be his only appearance during the Chollima’s lengthy qualifying campaign, with coach Kim opting to rely on his more experienced players for the remaining fixtures. However, Kim had also shone during qualifiers for the Olympic Football Tournament Beijing 2008, steering his side through into the final round by scoring in a 2-1 victory over Lebanon. Now he will be aiming to take his international career to new heights by shining at South Africa 2010.
