South Korean men's football team head coach Uli Stielike said Wednesday FC Porto striker Suk Hyun-jun will not start the FIFA World Cup regional qualifiers against Lebanon.

South Korea, 57th in FIFA rankings, face No. 145-ranked Lebanon 8 p.m. Thursday at Ansan Wa Stadium in Ansan, south of Seoul, for their Group G match of the second Asian qualifying round for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Stielike said that Suk, who has scored 10 goals in the Portuguese league this season after moving from Vitoria Setubal to Porto this January, has gone through a busy schedule since arriving in South Korea on Tuesday. The 24-year-old had scored twice in six matches for South Korea.

"He (Suk) arrived a day later than his expected schedule because of his flight delay from Porto to Frankfurt, and he went to Military Manpower Administration for physical examination Tuesday (for his military service)," Stielike said on Wednesday at a press conference at Ansan Wa Stadium. "So I think it will be difficult for him to start the match tomorrow."

Stielike's decision means that Ulsan Hyundai's Lee Jeong-hyeop, who has returned to the national team for the first time in seven months since suffering a cheekbone fracture, is likely to start at forward, while Seongnam FC's Hwang Ui-jo can also be a candidate.

Lee, who has scored three goals in 12 matches for South Korea, had been a regular pick by Stielike since the 2015 AFC Asian Cup.

However, Stielike emphasized that for whoever starts for the striker position, what's important is the support from midfielders.

"If other players just give average passes to the striker, it will be difficult for him to make the next play," he said. "Other players should make well-connected plays with the striker."

The 61-year-old German said that he won't test new tactics against Lebanon because it's still a World Cup qualifier and there is a record at stake.

South Korea are looking to extend their streak of consecutive clean sheet wins. By shutting down Lebanon, Uli Stielike's side will tie the national record at seven. The men's team previously had seven straight shutout wins in 1978 and 1989.

"I think it's right to test new things at friendly matches." he said.

Lebanese national team head coach Miodrag Radulovic said he expects a difficult match, but emphasized that his team is ready.

The Middle Eastern nation are currently third in Group G with three wins, one draw and two losses. They were previously beaten 3-0 by South Korea in September.

"Korea (are a) very good team," he said. "If we don't make mistakes like we did in the first game, we expect a good result." The 48-year-old Montenegrin coach said that the time difference is challenging, but the team is determined to finish second in the group. When asked who is the most threatening player in South Korea, Radulovic said the whole team.

"Korean players play on big clubs in Europe," he said. "It's not going to be easy, but we will try hard." (Yonhap)