Soccer-Injuries, military service disrupt Stielike's plans

By Sohee Kim SEOUL, June 1 (Reuters) - A combination of injuries and players fulfilling military service duties forced South Korea coach Uli Stielike to name a new-look squad for their upcoming 2018 World Cup qualifier against Myanmar on Monday. The South Koreans, who finished runners-up to Australia at the Asian Cup in January, will face United Arab Emirates in a friendly in Malaysia on June 11 before travelling to Bangkok for their Group G opener five days later. Myanmar have opted to use the Thai capital as the host venue after being banned from playing at home due to crowd trouble during a World Cup qualifier in 2011. While Stielike will be able to call upon key foreign-based duo Lee Chung-yong and Son Heung-min, he will be without Swansea City playmaker Ki Sung-yueng, who is recovering from a knee operation. The German-based trio of Park Joo-ho, Koo Ja-cheol and Ji Dong-won, as well as Wigan midfielder Kim Bo-kyung, will miss the trip to undergo four weeks of basic military training. All four have exemptions to the full military service period of almost two years thanks to their involvement in successful Olympic and Asian Games teams. Stielike said it had not been easy to select the 23-man squad and that they would not take 158th ranked Myanmar lightly. "There are many people who are already predicting a win against Myanmar, but it is clear we have to respect our opponents and do well to achieve victory," the German told reporters on Monday. With several international-based players missing, Stielike has put more focus on the domestic league and is feeding more young players into the squad. "For this squad I considered two things. Firstly, I have rewarded players who have been performing well in the league. Jeonbuk is the clear leader and I have called up four of their players. "Secondly, the squad has been assembled to prepare the next generation ahead of the World Cup and we have only three players who are in their 30s," he added. South Korea, who are bidding to appear at their ninth successive World Cup finals, also face Kuwait, Lebanon and Laos in the second round of 2018 qualifying. (Writing by Peter Rutherford; Editing by John O'Brien)