Position: Goalkeeper
Age: 23
Birth Date: Sep 9, 1986
Birth Place: Pyongyang, North Korea
Height: 6' 2" (1.87m)
Weight: 174 lbs (79 kg)
Club: Pyongyang City (North Korea)
International Caps: 33
Club History
Pyongyang City (PRK)
from Wikipedia (full wiki)
Ri Myong-Guk is a North Korean international football player. He plays for Pyongyang City in the DPR Korea League.
He played 15 matches in 2010 World Cup qualifying for Korea DPR, including keeping a clean sheet in the decisive final group game against Saudi Arabia. After the match, he stated "I felt like I was defending the gateway to my motherland". His performances also saw him nominated for the 2009 Asian Footballer of the Year award.
He will most likely be goalkeeper at the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa.
from ESPN SoccerNet
A safe pair of hands who was instrumental to his nation's passage to South Africa, Ri only missed one game in the 2010 World Cup qualifying push and let in just seven goals in 15 ties.
His positioning and appreciation of angles his main assets and while he is still a relatively youthful keeper, his reading of the game is excellent. In North Korea, he is considered the best keeper to emerge since Lee Chang-Myung, the national team's heroic stopper when they sensationally reached the quarter-finals of 1966 World Cup in England.
"We come together as one for the national team," says Ri. "That's been our strength and we will continue to be united at the World Cup. Our people will be proud to see us representing them in South Africa."
from FIFA.com
World-class goalkeeping was in plentiful supply in the Asian Zone qualifiers for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™, with Australia's Mark Schwarzer and Korea Republic's Lee Woon-Jae gaining plenty of plaudits for their performances. However, of all the keepers on show, it was Korea DPR youngster Ri Myong-Guk who stole the show throughout the continent’s lengthy qualifying competition.
As vintage wine adds to its value with the passage of time, experience invariably benefits goalkeepers, as the likes of Schwarzer and Lee have shown. At just 23, Ri has proved an exception to this rule, having excelled throughout as Korea DPR held off the likes of Iran and Saudi Arabia to take one of Asia’s four automatic qualifying berths.
Ri was just 20 when he earned his first national call-up as Korea DPR stepped up their qualifying campaign for South Africa 2010. After playing just 46 minutes in the two-legged opening qualifying matches against Mongolia, he impressed in the third-stage opener against Jordan as Korea DPR registered a hard-fought 1-0 away win. From that point onwards, the Pyongyang City man never looked back, starting all 13 of the Chollima’s remaining qualifying matches and making the position very much his own.
His ability to keep clean sheets was underlined during the third stage of qualifying as Korea DPR became the only Asian team to have an unblemished defensive record after six rounds of matches. Ri did go on to concede his first goal against United Arab Emirates, but was able to help Korea DPR hold out for a vital three points that further boosted their hopes. He also finished the campaign strongly, shutting out both Iran and Saudi Arabia as the Chollima made sure of their place at South Africa 2010.
Helping Korea DPR to their second FIFA World Cup became a major achievement for Ri, who was named his country’s Player of the Year last year. Heralded as one of the best goalies the nation have produced, the Pyongyang City Sports Group custodian has reached the iconic status with both club and country.
Ri may enter the FIFA World Cup finals in June as one of the tournament’s least experienced keepers, but he has already shown that, what he lacks in pedigree, he more than makes up for in skill and composure. If Korea DPR are to stun their formidable group rivals, they will need their outstanding young goalkeeper to rise to the occasion once again on the biggest stage of all.
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