[MyDaily = Kim Hee-su in Cheonan] Coach Philippe Blanc vowed his team would go all out.
Hyundai Capital meets Woori Card in Game 1 of the Jin Air 2025–2026 V-League men's playoffs at Yu Gwan-sun Gymnasium in Cheonan on March 27. It’s the first hurdle on Hyundai Capital’s bid to reclaim the title.
Blanc will be coaching his first short best-of-three (BO3) series in the V-League. Last season the team advanced straight to the final, so he only saw best-of-five action. “Whether it’s a best-of-three or best-of-five, the goal remains the same: win. Ideally we’d take two straight, but our objective is clear — get to the championship by any means. Playing up to eight games in a short span will be tough, but right now we’re focused solely on reaching the final,” he said.
Hyundai Capital holds a 4-2 edge over Woori Card this season, though it dropped both meetings in rounds five and six. Blanc warned that Woori Card has finally returned to the level they’re capable of. “They’re a strong group with several national-team players. Those players suffered some early-season aftereffects from national duty, but in the back half of the season they, along with Araujo and Ali, have been playing very well. Mentally they’re tough,” he said.
Blanc called out the match’s key priorities: “We need to run our side-outs efficiently and shut down their attacks on the counter. That will be crucial.”
Another key decision is who starts at opposite. Plan A is clearly Shin Ho-jin, but he showed some inconsistency late in the season, leaving room for doubt. “You can’t reinvent things in a short series — there’s not enough time. We have to maximize what we already have. I’ll put the player who’s performing best on the court. You’ll see our choice in this game,” Blanc said, keeping his lineup details close.
Still, he voiced confidence in Shin’s trajectory. “The one thing I’m certain of is that Shin Ho-jin keeps improving with every match, and I believe he’ll produce the top-level performance I expect when it matters most.” The question remains: will Shin start at opposite on game day?
