Coach Hong Myung-bo, who replaced his previous position as the head coach of the A-team, left a huge gap. Ulsan HD, which has had two consecutive K-League 1 wins, was never left the Big Three this season, although it was not the sole leader this season. However, the team was pushed out of the top three in the 25th round of Hana Bank’s K-League 1 2024. Ulsan fell to the fourth place (42 points) by losing 0-1 in an away match against Jeju United on Wednesday. If this continues, it will be difficult to win the K-League 1 title for three consecutive years, which is the beginning of the dynasty.
Ulsan in crisis has finally announced its next coach Hong. Kim Pan-gon, 55, who recently resigned from the leadership of the Malaysian national team, will take the helm of Ulsan. “Kim has demonstrated his leadership by alternately taking the helm of Korean clubs and national teams in other countries for the past 20 years. And he will make his first official K-League debut this year in his hometown of Ulsan,” Ulsan said.
Kim made his professional debut with Ulsan Hyundai in 1992 when he was an active player, and spent five seasons until 1996. He played for Jeonbuk Hyundai for one more season in 1997 before ending his K-League career. After playing as a player and manager in Hong Kong, he returned to Korea in 2005 and was appointed as coach of the Busan I’Park. In 2006 and 2007, three coaches he had helped retire, and led the team as acting coach.
It was when he was the head coach of the Hong Kong national team that started to stand out as a leader. He was recognized for his leadership to the extent that he was nicknamed “Hong Kong’s Hiddink.” In 2018, he transformed into an administrator and served as the chairman of the selection committee of the Korean Football Association’s national team coach. He played a leading role in advancing to the round of 16 teams at the Qatar World Cup in 2022 by recruiting Paulo Bento along with Hong, who was then the managing director of the Korea Football Association. 토토사이트
Kim also lived up to his reputation as an outstanding strategist in Malaysia. His performance was good, too. He led the team to the Qatar Asian Cup finals for the first time in the history of Malaysian soccer, and led the team to a 3-3 draw with South Korea in the group league. He was unfortunately eliminated due to a lack of points in the second Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup, but his future revealed.
However, this was the end of their relationship with the Malaysian national team. He renewed his contract with the Malaysian Football Association at the end of last year after taking the helm in January 2021. The contract lasts until 2025, but he terminated his contract with the Malaysian Football Association to take on another challenge. Kim had dreamed of returning to the K-League. He has found a new way by returning to Korea after Ulsan’s love call.
“We will present the most suitable game model for Ulsan’s current situation and performance, and establish Ulsan’s own playing style to quickly secure performance and performance,” Kim said. “For the first time in the K-League, I will be the official coach. Tension and expectation coexist. I feel like I have come a long way, but I want to show my mature performance to Korean soccer fans.”