Ki is contracted with Swansea through June 2018. When asked about the possibility of moving to a new club, Ki said he isn't thinking about transferring at this moment.

"My priority at this moment is to get healthy again," he said. "I still have a year left to my contract, and I have to talk with my club about the transfer."

Before thinking about his future with Swansea, Ki has an important national team duty, which is to help South Korea qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

In the final Asian qualifying round for the 2018 World Cup, South Korea are barely holding on to the final automatic qualification spot with only two matches remaining. The Taeguk Warriors are stuck at 13 points with four wins, a draw and three losses, sitting in second place in Group A and just one point above Uzbekistan.

In Asia, the top two teams from Groups A and B will advance directly to the World Cup in Russia. The two third-place teams must go through a playoffs for their final chance.

It's still unclear whether Ki will be able to play for South Korea next month, given his injury status. South Korea will host Iran on Aug. 31 and face Uzbekistan on the road five days later.

Ki, who has captained the national team, said it's important to have a fresh start with new head coach Shin Tae-yong, who was appointed earlier this month after Uli Stielike was sacked.

"When you are a footballer, you meet various coaches, and there are sad things, but that's football," he said. "Under a new head coach, we know people expect different things."

Shin was previously an assistant to Stielike, and Ki said since the players are familiar with the new head coach, the national team will deliver good results.

"The head coach knows the players well, and some of us already played matches under his guidance," he said. "When there's a coaching change, the team atmosphere also changes. We will play a better game." (Yonhap)