While the administrative turbulence of the Korea Football Association (KFA) was on Coach Hong Myung-bo of the Korean national soccer team, most players including those from European leagues supported him during the first call-up period. Will it be able to serve as a turning point for Team Hong, who is facing angry public sentiment from the start by gathering criticism that is beyond the “facts”.
The national soccer team led by head coach Hong made its first appearance by finishing the first and second rounds of the third Asian qualifying round for the North-China World Cup held on the 5th (0-0 at home against Palestine) and on the 10th (3-1 win against Oman) with one win and one draw. They will play the third and fourth games against Jordan (Original) on the 10th and Iraq (home) on the 15th of next month.
Coach Hong constantly visited the Seoul World Cup Stadium, where the match between FC Seoul and Daejeon Hana Citizen was held on the 14th with coach Kim Jin-kyu. Although he has not been listed on the national team, such as multi-defender Choi Joon and center back Kim Joo-sung (Seoul), he has many future-oriented representative resources. Coach Hong examined the characteristics of the players by talking with coach Kim, who was a former head of the Seoul Power Reinforcement Office.
Hong is scheduled to appear on Wednesday as witnesses to pending issues in the National Assembly with Chung Mong-gyu, president of the Korea Football Association, and Lee Im-saeng, general director of the technical headquarters. With not only fans but also politicians voicing controversy over the association’s administration, questions will likely be asked about pending issues. For Hong, questions will likely be asked about the acceptance process of the national team’s coach position.
It is a matter of God and Ulsan HD fans, who have previously taken the helm, that Hong has shown his willingness to apologize to when accepting the coach position. After showing his willingness to stay in Ulsan, the fans apologized for the strong backlash after accepting the position of coach of the national team. On the contrary, there is a view that there is no reason for Hong to be criticized when it comes to “procedural legitimacy.”
However, public opinion worsened as some YouTubers expressed Hong as if he participated in the selection process. It is in line with strong booing against not only Chung but also Hong at the first match against Palestine. However, the European national team’s Taegeuk Warriors and the K-League, who were selected for the national team, are praising Hong’s leadership.
Core center back Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) once made a hand gesture to the Red Devils of Supporters, who led the jeers in the stadium immediately after the match against Palestine. At the press conference before the away match in Oman, he also praised the coach (from the same position) saying, “It’s good for me to give feedback on what I lack.” Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), who is the core of the attack and has a huge fandom, also stressed, “Our players will trust and follow the coach 100%.”
Immediately after the match, Hong’s lack of tactics was cited as one of the unreasonable criticisms. In response, Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton) made his own remarks. At the time, Korea changed its team to a three-back position in the second half when the score was 1-1, and created chances in a central direction, with Son Heung-min and Ju Min-gyu hitting consecutive shots to win 3-1. “The coach ordered me to play in the 10th position in the middle, and linked with (Son) Heung-min and (Oh) Se-hoon, and linked with (Lee) Kang-in and (Hwang) In-beom,” he stressed. 먹튀검증
“Players also know the public opinion toward the coach,” a source close to A, a leading European team, said through Sports Seoul. “They seemed to want to be careful about their remarks. During the two consecutive games, there seems to be a sense that there is no problem in forming teamwork with Hong and other coaches.”
It is the result of continuing to dispel concerns. It remains to be seen whether the harmony of the team, which includes Hong and a number of big leaguers, who have matured as leaders of Ulsan, will shine even more at the second convocation in October.