Few people, maybe even the eventual winner Hamad Al Montashari, have happy memories of the fiasco that was 2005 Asian Player of the Year award. The Asian Football Confederation certainly doesn't as it nominated ten players for the shortlist only to remove most of them when it became apparent that they would not be able to attend the awards ceremony – leaving the sheepish Saudi defender to hold the trophy.
After that debacle, it was reassuring to read the sentence below on the confederations official homepage regarding the 2006 version.
"The eligibility criteria for selecting the best player of Asia has undergone a major and scientific revision, and the winner will be chosen on the basis of a weighted ranking system which takes into account performances at AFC tournaments, and key UEFA and FIFA tournaments.”
In a busy international year with Asian players involved in such FIFA and UEFA tournaments as the World Cup, Champions League and UEFA Cups as well as domestic leagues and the Asian Champions League, there were dozens of names to choose from. It must have been an unenviable task.
But the AFC did it.
The people that run Asian football have managed to make an even bigger mess than the one they created last year. At least in 2005 there was some logic to their decision, misguided and bizarre though it was, but the list released yesterday defies belief.
1) Badr Al Mutawa (Kuwait and Al Qadsiya)
2) Essa Al Mahiyani (Saudi Arabia and Al Wehda – Saudi)
3) Fahed Attal (Palestine)
4) Hawar Mulla Mohamed (Iraq and Apollon, Cyprus)
5) Ibraguim Rabimov (Tajikistan and Regar-Tadaz)
6) Ismael Matar (UAE and Al Wahda – UAE)
7) Khalfan Ibrahim (Qatar and Al Sadd)
8) Lionel Lewis (Singapore and Home United)
9) Mohamed Al Shlhoub (Saudi Arabia and Al Hilal)
10) Younis Mahmood (Iraq and Al Gharafa)
It should be pointed out that the nominees are all fine players but even the two Iraqis, two Saudi Arabians, one Tajikistani, one Qatari, one Kuwait, one Palestinian and the representatives from Singapore and UAE, must be wondering what is going on.
According to the AFC’s criteria, the nominees are decided partly on “key UEFA and FIFA tournaments”.
None of the players nominated have any experience at such tournaments (one Saudi nominee made the plane but not the pitch in Germany) but there are plenty of others who do. Plenty of Japanese, Koreans, Iranians and Australians who pitted themselves against the likes of Brazil, Italy, France and Portugal just five months ago but they have been mystifyingly ignored.
Perhaps the ten players nominated all achieved more than Tim Cahill who scored twice in Germany, cemented his place as one of the most accomplished midfielders in the Premier League and was nominated for the prize of European Footballer of the Year. If that is the case, the AFC needs to explain how.
Shunsuke Nakamura helped Celtic to a league title, scored at the World Cup and the Champions League but is apparently not worthy of a mention. Koreans in England such as Park Ji-sung, Lee Young-pyo and Seol Ki-hyeon have performed in the Premier League and in Germany. Iran’s Javad Nekounam became the first Iranian to play in Spain and Andranik Teymourian followed his impressive World Cup with a move to the Premier League.
It seems that despite what the AFC says, performances at FIFA or UEFA tournaments had no bearing at all on the selection, as all the players just mentioned have more experience in such competitions that any of the ten nominated.
Perhaps the answer lies in the criteria that states “performances at AFC tournaments” – the biggest of which in 2006 was the Asian Champions League – to be a factor.
It is strange then that in a confederation where the semi-finalists of the competition make up the four-strong list for ‘team of the year’ that not one player from winners Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, even the star of the tournament Yeom Ki-hoon makes the list. The young winger recovered from a serious automobile accident to break into the national team and help drive Jeonbuk to the continental title but is absent as are any players from runners-up Al Karama.
Of all the Asian players who made it past the first round of the continental competition, only one, Kuwait’s Badr Al Mutawa, finds himself in the running.
If it isn’t performances at the World Cup, in Europe or the AFC Champions League which determine selection then perhaps it is performances at the domestic level.
It is surprising then that not one player from three of Asia’s strongest domestic leagues – the C, J and K - makes the list.
China’s Li Jinyu and Zheng Zhi excelled in Shandong Luneng’s romp to the title. In the J-League, Marcus Tulio Tanaka has been a rock for Urawa Reds and Ryuji Bando has been prolific for Gamba Osaka. In Korea, Lee Chun-soo scored once at the World Cup and six times in three games in the East Asian Champions Cup.
It is impossible to select all of these fine players mentioned but not to nominate a single one is another worrying misjudgement by the people in charge of Asian football, one to go with 2005 and the decision to select four co-hosts for the 2007 Asian Cup.
Using the AFC’s own criteria, many players not nominated have greater claim to the prize than many of those who are.
The Asian Football Confederation needs to explain the reasoning behind the decision if it is to salvage any of its fast disappearing credibility.
Copyright: John Duerden & Soccerphile
Asian Soccer News and Interviews
K-League soccer football Asian Soccer Korea Iran Soccer Korean Soccer
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Showing posts with label South Korea national team. Show all posts
Showing posts with label South Korea national team. Show all posts
Friday, November 17, 2006
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Kim Hak-Bom: Coach Of Korea's Winning Machine
In Korean, ‘Chunma’ is a Pegasus - the creature that in Greek legend had the ability to fly above the rest of the herd. Seongnam Ilwha Chunma has been doing just that in the K-League since 1993 when the team won the first of, to date, six titles.
The air may be thinner at the top, but the pressure to maintain high standards is intense and unyielding.
"There's a lot of pressure," Head Coach Kim Hak-bom told Soccerphile. "Our goal is always to win the championship and other competitions too. Just maintaining our position as one of the top teams is tough by itself."
It may be tough at the top, but that is where Seongnam is and plans to stay. The last league trophy resided in the trophy cabinet just to the south of Seoul in 2003. Kim took over at the beginning of 2005 and in the first half of 2006 he steered the team to the K-League first stage title -- by a margin of ten points -- earning a place in the end of season championship playoffs.
Even after such a statement of superiority, Seongnam was busy in the summer. US$1 million was enough to tempt ex-Romanian international striker Adrian Naega from Chunnam Dragons to link up with a strike force that is already one of the strongest among the league's 14 teams.
An added bonus to Naega's undoubted predatory skills was the fact, apart from his European experience, that he had already spent a year in Korea. According to Kim, buying players is a lottery.
"The chance of success is 50-50," the 46 year-old says. "Brazilians have mild characters and are good buys. They are technically very good. On the whole, good European players won't come to Korea but in Brazil they have two groups of players -- one goes to Europe, the others go to other countries."
"Sometimes I can find players in China or Southeast Asia but their level is not so high; we can find these types of players in Korea too. In China and Southeast Asia the players are a little expensive and they are a little lazy."
In this increasing age of globalization, coaches across the world are faced with the problem of blending players of different nationalities into a coherent and hard-working team. Kim has an advantage in the particularly potent brand of firewater that all Koreans know and not a few love.
"Soju is one way!" He laughs and adds, "With Soju they can talk heart to heart."
Perhaps the rice-based spirit could be made freely available in the stadium to tempt fans to the small stadium near Bundang station. Seongnam may be the country's most successful team, but they also attract the lowest crowds.
The team, Ilhwa Chunma, moved to Seongnam from Chonan in 2000 and it wasn't warmly welcomed by the sizeable Christian population in the city. The protestors objected to the fact that the club is owned by the controversial Unification Church. The church was founded by Reverend Moon Sung-myong, a name that gave rise to the nickname, widely used in the Western press, of "The Moonies".
Kim cares only about his team but is at a loss to explain why Seongnam have few followers.
"I just don't know," he says as he lights a cigarette. "As a coach, I am not happy with the situation. We do well but the fans don't come. It could be religious reasons or regional reasons, In the K-League, the regional feeling is weak. Seongnam people have no feeling for their city team.
"All we can do is play and perform well and then the supporters will know that and hopefully come back. The club officials are always trying to think of ways to attract fans. I hope to be like Manchester United where the tickets are already sold out."
Kim has been in the job around 18 months but before he answered Seongnam's call, he spent two years sitting on the Korean Football Association's Technical Committee, the body that is responsible for the national team.
The coach believes that the team over-achieved in 2002 and its natural level is just between the first and second rounds.
"It wasn't bad," he says "but we could have done better. The formation of the team was too defensive. Everyone agrees with this, including professional analysts, the media and the fans. Against Togo ... we should have been more attacking; they were a man down. If we have one more goal then we have a much better chance of reaching the second round."
"Look at Hiddink; did you think that Korea would beat Italy? But he said that 'this is Korea so we have no problem.' Advocaat is a top-class coach but he needed a big goal and then needed to develop a plan towards that. Hiddink did so and gave the players leadership and confidence to do so. Advocaat didn't."
Despite his criticisms of Advocaat, Kim holds the Dutchman in high regard, unlike his two predecessors Humberto Coelho and Jo Bonfrere. He urged the new coach, Pim Verbeek, to watch as many Korean games as possible in a bid to find the stars of the future.
"I was a member of the KFA technical committee with Coelho and Bonfrere. They used to say that there are no players in Korea. We said 'Hey, you are supposed to be high-level coaches. You say there are no players?' At the time we said to them 'we pay you lots of money to find players, you have to look.'"
With his national team experience, if Kim can achieve consistent success with Seongnam, then he could become a prime candidate for the national coaching job.
"It's good to learn from skilful foreign coaches. Someday Korean coaches have to take a role in the national team. It's hard to say if I will do but if a Korean person has experience and skill then they should have the opportunity."
Copyright: John Duerden & Soccerphile.com
K-League News and Interviews
K-League soccer football Pim Verbeek Korea Kim Hak-Bom John Duerden Seongnam Ilwha Chunma
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Pim Verbeek interview
When were you offered the job?
We started talking seriously around the World Cup, before the game against Togo. At the time, we had the first meetings because officially Advocaat told the KFA on 15th June that he was leaving. I think that was three or four days after the Togo game. Before that he had a meeting with the KFA and told them that he would definitely leave the Korean national team.
That is when they came to me and said “he is leaving and we would like to go on with you.”
What was your reaction?
To be honest, my plan was to go to Europe. I had been away from my family for so long and I had more or less decided to go back to Europe and spend at least five or six months there and see what is happening.
Then this came and my family knows very well how much I like it in Korea and what I think about Korean football so they could understand that this was an offer I could not refuse. This is perhaps the only foreign job I would take because I know the country so well. I really think we can have great success.
It’s an obvious question but what are the main differences between being the assistant and head coach of South Korea?
Working with Hiddink and Advocaat is not so difficult because they give you all the freedom to organize the training sessions, to prepare team meetings and analysis and things like that. In the end, they take the final decision. You can have so many ideas yourself but in the end you always have to go to somebody who makes the final decision.
The good part is that with Hiddink and Advocaat, I never had a problem with the line-up, selection or whatever. You do a lot of the work but you never had the responsibility, that’s the biggest difference. If we win, I am responsible. If we lose, I am also responsible but that’s just a feeling.
How about the day-to-day things, the social side?
You know I always refuse interviews because of the limited time we have and also because I wanted to first have some results, know the players better and people know me better before I start talking about what the plans are.
The second part is that it is not so easy to go outside any more. Is that a big problem? For me it’s quite a big problem to be honest. I’d like to be outside and see something of the Korean culture and be among the people -drink a cup of coffee and visit a nice place. It is not so nice any more to go out and if I go out I wear a hat and sunglasses and that works but… it’s good that I have already seen a lot of Korea as now I spend my spare time inside.
The price you pay…
Yes, I knew that. I saw it with Hiddink and Advocaat. I always thought that that is the least interesting part of the job. I understand that everyone wants pictures and autographs and I try to co-operate as much as possible but it keeps you more inside and away from the social side than I like.
Has that aspect changed a lot since you became head coach?
It’s very strange. I was already here nine months and people recognize you and they say hello and take pictures but the moment they knew I was the new head coach, it was like I had scored ten goals in the World Cup!
It’s very strange but it keeps my feet on the ground because it has nothing to do with me but it’s all about my position. As the national team coach I am on television more than I was before. It’s not because I am a nice guy or because of my blue eyes but because I am the national team coach.
You are popular in Korea but after a few bad results, that could change. Are you prepared for that?
That’s the responsibility you take. I have the idea that the coaching staff and me do everything to make the team better and the players better and to win games. So as long as I have the feeling myself that I have done everything I can then I will accept everything. I have no problems at all with that. I started my coaching career in 1987 so after 19 years, nothing surprises me.
I didn’t come here to be the most popular and nice guy in Korea, I am here to get results from the national team and build up the national team.
The situation is different than the last two times you were here. Then, everything was focused on the World Cup but now there is a real chance to start from scratch.
Yes, it’s very different. We have a short-term plan and a long-term plan. I have tried to mix both but it depends a little bit on the results. It would have made my plans a lot easier if we had already qualified for the Asian Cup because then we could look toward the Asian Games, the Asian Cup and the Olympics but still now we need to get a point from the last two qualifying games.
It’s not easy to go to Iran and you know in football that everything is possible. People say “it’s only Syria at home” but in football everything is possible. We have to concentrate and bring in the best team we can find. This is no time for taking risks because that is what I’ve heard from left and right that some people still think that I don’t take enough risks.
I am not here to take risks. I am here to bring in the best players or bring in those who have a future and bring them in at the right moment like I did last week with Choi Sung-kuk. He had a very good training camp and is doing very well at Ulsan.
Who are these people who say you don’t take enough risks?
There are always people around in every job who think they know better than you – what you should and shouldn’t do. I don’t care about that as I think that is a strong point of football also. Everybody has an opinion; everybody speaks about it and is blaming players, coaches or referees. I am not stressed about it.
In answer to your question though I am trying to qualify for the Asian Cup and give young players a chance to show what they can do and also give the young players a chance to train with the best players we have in Korea. For every young player to train and play with people like Seol Ki-hyeon, Lee Young-pyo and Park Ji-sung is great and not only in training as they hear so many stories about how it is in Europe and how you can get there.
What is the main difference between you and Advocaat?
Advocaat was here for the World Cup and everything was geared towards that. He didn't have time to think about the long-term development of the game and the players but wanted good results – that was his job – though he did help young players like Lee Ho, Kim Dong-jin and Cho Won-hee.
He always wanted good results, even in friendlies because it not only helped confidence but because he knew that in Korea, results mean everything. I think that sometimes it is more important to give young players a chance in a friendly but Advocaat’s job was the World Cup. I have more time.
In the friendly games I will use some players and let them get some experience because that is the only way that they will become better players. It is also possible to make mistakes. I think that people in Korea have some problems to accept that, they think that if you are a national team player then you cannot make mistakes.
Last Saturday (in the 1-1 draw with Iran in which Iran scored in the last-minute to earn a 1-1 draw) we brought in one of the youngest and most talented young goalkeepers that we have in Korea (Kim Young-kwang). He played two very good games for us and we had no complaints at all. He did very well in training and he’s involved in one goal. I think there are three other players involved in that situation who made the first three mistakes. But people ask ‘why didn’t he play Woon-jae?”
In that situation where a mistake leads to a goal, what do you say to the players after a game?
After the game I didn’t say anything because I know from my experience that there is too much emotion. If you win there is a lot of emotion but it’s different but last week the level of disappointment was so high for everybody.
Nobody expected that we would concede a goal – nobody, because they had no chances at all. I told the players that I would say what I wanted to say on the next day. First you have to let the emotion slide away and then the next day they are more open to what I have to say.
So what did you say?
Of course, it was all to do with concentration, like it was in the World Cup. Without blaming Choi Jin-cheul but we knew exactly how Switzerland take the free-kicks and the corner kicks. When they take a free-kick and their most important player scores a goal then it has to do without concentration.
At that moment we were chasing the game and the consequences of losing concentration and playing for themselves are serious. Nam-il said that to the media, I never knew it but he said it anyway and I think everybody agreed with it and even the players agree. We showed them video analysis and we showed them what we didn’t do well. It’s nothing to do with the result but if you want to be a better team we need to avoid things like that.
So you agree with what Kim Nam-il said? (the new captain criticized overseas players such as Seol Ki-hyeon and Park Ji-sung for not playing for the team)
I fully agree. The players agree also with me. I can understand because I have been in Korea a long time already. The moment some players get the ball, the fans go crazy so the players always want to show how good they are and they want to entertain. I told them “do that when it is 6-0” and even then I think you should still play for the team.
We gave examples when everybody was there, I know it’s not really Korean style to confront players with what they did wrong but they know me well enough to know that we have to learn from our mistakes.
I’m not hiding. I think that everybody can make mistakes but you have to be alert and aware enough to know that you have made a mistake and the next time you should not make a mistake. If you make the same mistake three times and then you’re out.
The European-based players are used to getting criticised by the coach. I think I was fair; I showed them and didn’t say anything stupid after the game by yelling or shouting. That’s useless.
What about the World Cup? What were your thoughts on the team’s performance in 2006?
We still think and everybody thinks that the players could have done better. That’s easy to say but afterwards you need to find out what the problems are. For me it was easy because we had too short preparation time – that’s one.
Secondly, the players who are the most important players in your team at that moment, all of them came unfit – through an injury or not playing games for their clubs for the last four, five or six months.
For example Ahn Jung-hwan, Seol Ki-hyeon, Park Ji-sung –he came with an injury, he missed the first three weeks and he is a key player for us. So, the pressure and responsibility fell on the shoulders of players who are not the kind of players who can take it.
We knew that because of the lack of preparation that the players would get better as they played more games and we were 100% sure that it we reached the second round then the players would get much, much better – Park Ji-sung was much better in the final game than he was in the first or second game. He hadn’t played for four weeks. That was bad for him, the pressure on his shoulders was so big, he’s playing in Europe and everybody expects so much. You know how many commercials they made over here.
That was one of the most important reasons why we didn’t go to the second round. The first game we were under a lot of pressure, everybody expects us to win against Togo but it’s the first game for a lot of players in the World Cup. In the second game against France, we did much better and against Switzerland it’s all or nothing.
We gave an unnecessary goal away then you know you have to score a minimum of two.
What about the second Switzerland goal?
I still think it’s offside but I’ve seen so many times in football than a goal is 100% offside for one referee and the next referee doesn’t even look at it. I think that nobody knows what the exact rules are.
Many in Korea felt that the tactics and formations were too defensive, especially against Togo when Korea were leading 2-1 and against ten men and Switzerland, what would you say to that?
I don’t agree – at all. The only thing that matters in the first game is winning -three points. It was the same situation last week against Iran. We are winning 1-0 and the three points are very important. You can do two things and say ‘OK, we are going for 2-0 and then the game is finished but if that is not possible you say ‘OK, take the three points’.
I still think that Togo was dangerous in the counter-attack so why make it stupid for yourself and allow them a chance to make it 2-2? Three points is most important. Even with the next game against France, we always knew from the start that the Swiss game would be the most decisive game.
It’s easy to say three games afterwards that we should have scored more goals –if, if, if. Afterwards, I also know exactly what went well and what went wrong. I have no problems if people think that way but only one person makes the decision.
It’s been an interesting couple of weeks for some of Korea’s players. For example, you omitted Ahn Jung-hwan from the Iran squad as he is currently without a club. What advice would you give to him to get back in the national team?
He knows also that he was gambling. He must have been gambling, I am not involved and I am not his agent but I am 100% sure that there were some teams interested in him and probably they were not at the level he had in mind to play at for the rest of his career.
That’s gambling – he took a risk to wait for a better possibility. Everybody is responsible for his own decisions and I think this is the wrong decision. I am sure that he thinks the same. Even if he doesn’t play in the biggest league in the world he is still playing football and he is still at an age where he can play for another two or three years. Put yourself in one of those leagues and if you score 20 goals in one of those so-called ‘minor leagues’ then you are still an interesting player.
What are the chances of him playing for the national team again?
At this moment –absolutely zero. There is no chance. I really like him as a player because he is a player that can decide any game. I was really thinking about using him in the Iran game because even in the last 15-20 minutes, he can do a job and score a goal.
It is impossible. I can’t defend my decision to the outside world to take a player without a club who hasn’t played a game for two months. Secondly, I knew that Jung Jo-gook was playing well in Seoul and if you leave out a talented player like Park Chu-young saying that he’s not playing so well then how can you select a player without a club?
I can still think about his qualities but you can’t take a player who is not playing and has no future.
If he joins a team, it doesn’t matter so much what kind of team and what kind of league, as long as he’s playing football?
Yes, for me it doesn’t make a difference. There are no players in Korea at the moment with his qualities. Jo-gook is a good player for the future but we don’t have players like Ahn who can decide the game out of nothing. He is an experienced player and really wants to play in the Asian Cup.
Why do you think he has such problems with his club career?
If I am the coach of a club then I would look at his resume and to be honest, he didn’t have so many appearances in France and then he went to Germany and played twice in five months. He is 30 years old and coaches start thinking that maybe he isn’t one of the cheapest players and then they think he’s too risky.
I still think that for a lot of teams that he can be an interesting player. If any coach calls me I will tell him Ahn’s qualities.
I would also say that he was not lucky in Germany. He arrived at a bad time. The moment he arrived in Duisberg, the team started winning without him. For a new player, that’s a disaster, it’s good for the club but not for the player. I understand the coach, he’s winning without Ahn so why change?
He was unlucky because I spoke with the director and the coach before they bought him. I explained to them exactly what kind of player he is and they said that desperately needed a type like that – they were so positive and so enthusiastic so they took him but then they started winning without him, then it’s difficult.
For us he was a starting member but he didn’t show in the three weeks before the World Cup that he was fit enough, mentally fit enough and that he was sharp enough to start in the World Cup.
It was the same with Seol Ki-hyeon. I think nobody in England could foresee that Seol is playing as well as he is doing now. If you look at his time with Wolves, especially the last six months, he was never in the team. Could you have told anybody that a player who couldn’t play in a second division team in England is now one of the most attractive players in the Premiership?
How about Lee Chun-soo? He had a chance of a trial in England but he turned it down.
I didn’t know that until last week. I haven’t spoken to him about it but I can understand as he wants to go abroad.
Would he do well in England?
I think Chun-soo can play in any game, anywhere in Europe because he has many special qualities though he still has a lot to learn. A lot of coaches and teams would be very happy to have a player like that who is left and right footed, he can score goals and he can score free-kicks. He’s willing to work for 90 minutes. A fit Lee Chun-soo is for any team, except perhaps the top three in the big leagues, a good player.
Many Dutch teams would be very happy to have a player like him. The only problem is that we don’t have the money to have a player like Lee Chun-soo. That’s a pity because I still think that the Dutch league is for any player, especially from Asia, to show themselves and get used to the European level, is a good league.
Also there was Lee Young-pyo and his near move to Roma, what was your take on that?
I saw him play for Spurs recently in the right-full back position. I saw that the left full-back they bought from Lens in France was doing a very good job. I think that Young-pyo also knows that the left-sided position will not be easy for him.
I don’t know. I spoke to him and said “if you your future is at Spurs then you have to focus on the right full-back position because I think the left back is doing a good job.”
I have no idea why he didn’t go to Roma. He told me that it had nothing to do with his religion. But what the real reason was, he said ‘I will keep it to myself.”
Spurs bought a new right-back, a very promising, talented, right full-back ..
And expensive…
And expensive and I know the coach is really happy with his new signings but I also know that he was really willing to keep Young-pyo. I don’t see many players who can play left-back and right-back and have such a fantastic mentality.
How about Park Chu-young, do you think too much pressure was placed on his shoulders too quickly?
Yes – we knew that last year. Even last year we had our doubts but every ball he touched was a goal – he had the golden touch. Everybody knows also that after such a year it will be difficult – not only now but it already started in March.
From March to the World Cup he didn’t do well but we took him because he still had something special – he’s fast, he’s hard-working and he can score goals. We had our doubts before the World Cup?
What kind of doubts?
He wasn’t playing well; he didn’t score goals any more. He started not to play for the team but to go for his own chances which if you are feeling well is good but if you are not feeling well then you have to look a little bit more for your team-mates.
It was difficult for a 20 year-old player to continue at the same level. It’s not bad at this time for him to be out of the squad line-up and return to do what he’s always done, scoring goals for his club and getting his confidence back.
I’ve always said that we can use him for the next few years because he is one of our promising players. The question is how long he will stay in the deep hole that he is in at the moment. He knows – he’s intelligent. That’s the good part, he’s not acting as a star – at all. He just hangs around with the other players, working hard in training. The difference is that last year that everything he touched was a goal but this year it is going over and wide and to the goalkeeper.
One problem is that he is not a player for a three-striker system. He’s a two-striker system player where he has a free role and can run everywhere and be dangerous in front of the penalty area. So we have to change our system and use his qualities or he has to change.
Also Lee Eul-young has retired from the national team…
He said to me in the training camp that “there are so many good players – it is time for them now, they are good enough and getting better all the time, I want to focus on my own club.”
I told him that I respected what he said. I still think that technical-wise that he is one of our better players; he never makes a mistake when he has the ball. I said to him: “stay with us this week and let the young players learn from you.” He said no problem.
I respect his decision and I think he is right. The younger generation is growing very fast. He had a great career, he played in two World Cups and he played in Europe. He was a technical and very intelligent player.
Will the team miss him?
He is not a starting member any more because the younger players are coming. Everyone knows about the qualities of Baek Ji-hoon, Jung-woo, Lee Ho so they all have to fight and Doo-heon is showing himself. We have some 16 or 17 year-old players in FC Seoul, we have Oh Beom-seok who can play in several positions so it would have been difficult for Eul-yong to be a starting member but I always like that kind of player to help the younger ones. Especially in training, players like Ji-hoon can learn a lot from him.
What are your plans for the rest of the year apart from qualifying from the Asian Cup?
We're focusing on the Asian games. We have to make a quick decision about the Asian Games selection.
Are the Asian Games a big deal?
I think so. If you look at the possible selection then there are a lot of national team players, the more international experience they get, the better it is. A lot of these players will be in line to play in the Asian Cup and if you look at their age then they in 2010 they will be around 27 and the main part of the national team. Even if it isn’t the highest quality tournament, you still have to play international games and I like to have the team together.
But first we must qualify for the Asian Cup.
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K-League soccer football Pim Verbeek Korea Park Chu young Lee Young-pyo Lee Chun-soo
Copyright © John Duerden & Soccerphile.com
Read an interview with Pim's younger brother Robert Verbeek, presently coach of J-League Omiya Ardija for the 2007 Season.
Robert Verbeek Interview
Canon Word Tank V30
We started talking seriously around the World Cup, before the game against Togo. At the time, we had the first meetings because officially Advocaat told the KFA on 15th June that he was leaving. I think that was three or four days after the Togo game. Before that he had a meeting with the KFA and told them that he would definitely leave the Korean national team.
That is when they came to me and said “he is leaving and we would like to go on with you.”
What was your reaction?
To be honest, my plan was to go to Europe. I had been away from my family for so long and I had more or less decided to go back to Europe and spend at least five or six months there and see what is happening.
Then this came and my family knows very well how much I like it in Korea and what I think about Korean football so they could understand that this was an offer I could not refuse. This is perhaps the only foreign job I would take because I know the country so well. I really think we can have great success.
It’s an obvious question but what are the main differences between being the assistant and head coach of South Korea?
Working with Hiddink and Advocaat is not so difficult because they give you all the freedom to organize the training sessions, to prepare team meetings and analysis and things like that. In the end, they take the final decision. You can have so many ideas yourself but in the end you always have to go to somebody who makes the final decision.
The good part is that with Hiddink and Advocaat, I never had a problem with the line-up, selection or whatever. You do a lot of the work but you never had the responsibility, that’s the biggest difference. If we win, I am responsible. If we lose, I am also responsible but that’s just a feeling.
How about the day-to-day things, the social side?
You know I always refuse interviews because of the limited time we have and also because I wanted to first have some results, know the players better and people know me better before I start talking about what the plans are.
The second part is that it is not so easy to go outside any more. Is that a big problem? For me it’s quite a big problem to be honest. I’d like to be outside and see something of the Korean culture and be among the people -drink a cup of coffee and visit a nice place. It is not so nice any more to go out and if I go out I wear a hat and sunglasses and that works but… it’s good that I have already seen a lot of Korea as now I spend my spare time inside.
The price you pay…
Yes, I knew that. I saw it with Hiddink and Advocaat. I always thought that that is the least interesting part of the job. I understand that everyone wants pictures and autographs and I try to co-operate as much as possible but it keeps you more inside and away from the social side than I like.
Has that aspect changed a lot since you became head coach?
It’s very strange. I was already here nine months and people recognize you and they say hello and take pictures but the moment they knew I was the new head coach, it was like I had scored ten goals in the World Cup!
It’s very strange but it keeps my feet on the ground because it has nothing to do with me but it’s all about my position. As the national team coach I am on television more than I was before. It’s not because I am a nice guy or because of my blue eyes but because I am the national team coach.
You are popular in Korea but after a few bad results, that could change. Are you prepared for that?
That’s the responsibility you take. I have the idea that the coaching staff and me do everything to make the team better and the players better and to win games. So as long as I have the feeling myself that I have done everything I can then I will accept everything. I have no problems at all with that. I started my coaching career in 1987 so after 19 years, nothing surprises me.
I didn’t come here to be the most popular and nice guy in Korea, I am here to get results from the national team and build up the national team.
The situation is different than the last two times you were here. Then, everything was focused on the World Cup but now there is a real chance to start from scratch.
Yes, it’s very different. We have a short-term plan and a long-term plan. I have tried to mix both but it depends a little bit on the results. It would have made my plans a lot easier if we had already qualified for the Asian Cup because then we could look toward the Asian Games, the Asian Cup and the Olympics but still now we need to get a point from the last two qualifying games.
It’s not easy to go to Iran and you know in football that everything is possible. People say “it’s only Syria at home” but in football everything is possible. We have to concentrate and bring in the best team we can find. This is no time for taking risks because that is what I’ve heard from left and right that some people still think that I don’t take enough risks.
I am not here to take risks. I am here to bring in the best players or bring in those who have a future and bring them in at the right moment like I did last week with Choi Sung-kuk. He had a very good training camp and is doing very well at Ulsan.
Who are these people who say you don’t take enough risks?
There are always people around in every job who think they know better than you – what you should and shouldn’t do. I don’t care about that as I think that is a strong point of football also. Everybody has an opinion; everybody speaks about it and is blaming players, coaches or referees. I am not stressed about it.
In answer to your question though I am trying to qualify for the Asian Cup and give young players a chance to show what they can do and also give the young players a chance to train with the best players we have in Korea. For every young player to train and play with people like Seol Ki-hyeon, Lee Young-pyo and Park Ji-sung is great and not only in training as they hear so many stories about how it is in Europe and how you can get there.
What is the main difference between you and Advocaat?
Advocaat was here for the World Cup and everything was geared towards that. He didn't have time to think about the long-term development of the game and the players but wanted good results – that was his job – though he did help young players like Lee Ho, Kim Dong-jin and Cho Won-hee.
He always wanted good results, even in friendlies because it not only helped confidence but because he knew that in Korea, results mean everything. I think that sometimes it is more important to give young players a chance in a friendly but Advocaat’s job was the World Cup. I have more time.
In the friendly games I will use some players and let them get some experience because that is the only way that they will become better players. It is also possible to make mistakes. I think that people in Korea have some problems to accept that, they think that if you are a national team player then you cannot make mistakes.
Last Saturday (in the 1-1 draw with Iran in which Iran scored in the last-minute to earn a 1-1 draw) we brought in one of the youngest and most talented young goalkeepers that we have in Korea (Kim Young-kwang). He played two very good games for us and we had no complaints at all. He did very well in training and he’s involved in one goal. I think there are three other players involved in that situation who made the first three mistakes. But people ask ‘why didn’t he play Woon-jae?”
In that situation where a mistake leads to a goal, what do you say to the players after a game?
After the game I didn’t say anything because I know from my experience that there is too much emotion. If you win there is a lot of emotion but it’s different but last week the level of disappointment was so high for everybody.
Nobody expected that we would concede a goal – nobody, because they had no chances at all. I told the players that I would say what I wanted to say on the next day. First you have to let the emotion slide away and then the next day they are more open to what I have to say.
So what did you say?
Of course, it was all to do with concentration, like it was in the World Cup. Without blaming Choi Jin-cheul but we knew exactly how Switzerland take the free-kicks and the corner kicks. When they take a free-kick and their most important player scores a goal then it has to do without concentration.
At that moment we were chasing the game and the consequences of losing concentration and playing for themselves are serious. Nam-il said that to the media, I never knew it but he said it anyway and I think everybody agreed with it and even the players agree. We showed them video analysis and we showed them what we didn’t do well. It’s nothing to do with the result but if you want to be a better team we need to avoid things like that.
So you agree with what Kim Nam-il said? (the new captain criticized overseas players such as Seol Ki-hyeon and Park Ji-sung for not playing for the team)
I fully agree. The players agree also with me. I can understand because I have been in Korea a long time already. The moment some players get the ball, the fans go crazy so the players always want to show how good they are and they want to entertain. I told them “do that when it is 6-0” and even then I think you should still play for the team.
We gave examples when everybody was there, I know it’s not really Korean style to confront players with what they did wrong but they know me well enough to know that we have to learn from our mistakes.
I’m not hiding. I think that everybody can make mistakes but you have to be alert and aware enough to know that you have made a mistake and the next time you should not make a mistake. If you make the same mistake three times and then you’re out.
The European-based players are used to getting criticised by the coach. I think I was fair; I showed them and didn’t say anything stupid after the game by yelling or shouting. That’s useless.
What about the World Cup? What were your thoughts on the team’s performance in 2006?
We still think and everybody thinks that the players could have done better. That’s easy to say but afterwards you need to find out what the problems are. For me it was easy because we had too short preparation time – that’s one.
Secondly, the players who are the most important players in your team at that moment, all of them came unfit – through an injury or not playing games for their clubs for the last four, five or six months.
For example Ahn Jung-hwan, Seol Ki-hyeon, Park Ji-sung –he came with an injury, he missed the first three weeks and he is a key player for us. So, the pressure and responsibility fell on the shoulders of players who are not the kind of players who can take it.
We knew that because of the lack of preparation that the players would get better as they played more games and we were 100% sure that it we reached the second round then the players would get much, much better – Park Ji-sung was much better in the final game than he was in the first or second game. He hadn’t played for four weeks. That was bad for him, the pressure on his shoulders was so big, he’s playing in Europe and everybody expects so much. You know how many commercials they made over here.
That was one of the most important reasons why we didn’t go to the second round. The first game we were under a lot of pressure, everybody expects us to win against Togo but it’s the first game for a lot of players in the World Cup. In the second game against France, we did much better and against Switzerland it’s all or nothing.
We gave an unnecessary goal away then you know you have to score a minimum of two.
What about the second Switzerland goal?
I still think it’s offside but I’ve seen so many times in football than a goal is 100% offside for one referee and the next referee doesn’t even look at it. I think that nobody knows what the exact rules are.
Many in Korea felt that the tactics and formations were too defensive, especially against Togo when Korea were leading 2-1 and against ten men and Switzerland, what would you say to that?
I don’t agree – at all. The only thing that matters in the first game is winning -three points. It was the same situation last week against Iran. We are winning 1-0 and the three points are very important. You can do two things and say ‘OK, we are going for 2-0 and then the game is finished but if that is not possible you say ‘OK, take the three points’.
I still think that Togo was dangerous in the counter-attack so why make it stupid for yourself and allow them a chance to make it 2-2? Three points is most important. Even with the next game against France, we always knew from the start that the Swiss game would be the most decisive game.
It’s easy to say three games afterwards that we should have scored more goals –if, if, if. Afterwards, I also know exactly what went well and what went wrong. I have no problems if people think that way but only one person makes the decision.
It’s been an interesting couple of weeks for some of Korea’s players. For example, you omitted Ahn Jung-hwan from the Iran squad as he is currently without a club. What advice would you give to him to get back in the national team?
He knows also that he was gambling. He must have been gambling, I am not involved and I am not his agent but I am 100% sure that there were some teams interested in him and probably they were not at the level he had in mind to play at for the rest of his career.
That’s gambling – he took a risk to wait for a better possibility. Everybody is responsible for his own decisions and I think this is the wrong decision. I am sure that he thinks the same. Even if he doesn’t play in the biggest league in the world he is still playing football and he is still at an age where he can play for another two or three years. Put yourself in one of those leagues and if you score 20 goals in one of those so-called ‘minor leagues’ then you are still an interesting player.
What are the chances of him playing for the national team again?
At this moment –absolutely zero. There is no chance. I really like him as a player because he is a player that can decide any game. I was really thinking about using him in the Iran game because even in the last 15-20 minutes, he can do a job and score a goal.
It is impossible. I can’t defend my decision to the outside world to take a player without a club who hasn’t played a game for two months. Secondly, I knew that Jung Jo-gook was playing well in Seoul and if you leave out a talented player like Park Chu-young saying that he’s not playing so well then how can you select a player without a club?
I can still think about his qualities but you can’t take a player who is not playing and has no future.
If he joins a team, it doesn’t matter so much what kind of team and what kind of league, as long as he’s playing football?
Yes, for me it doesn’t make a difference. There are no players in Korea at the moment with his qualities. Jo-gook is a good player for the future but we don’t have players like Ahn who can decide the game out of nothing. He is an experienced player and really wants to play in the Asian Cup.
Why do you think he has such problems with his club career?
If I am the coach of a club then I would look at his resume and to be honest, he didn’t have so many appearances in France and then he went to Germany and played twice in five months. He is 30 years old and coaches start thinking that maybe he isn’t one of the cheapest players and then they think he’s too risky.
I still think that for a lot of teams that he can be an interesting player. If any coach calls me I will tell him Ahn’s qualities.
I would also say that he was not lucky in Germany. He arrived at a bad time. The moment he arrived in Duisberg, the team started winning without him. For a new player, that’s a disaster, it’s good for the club but not for the player. I understand the coach, he’s winning without Ahn so why change?
He was unlucky because I spoke with the director and the coach before they bought him. I explained to them exactly what kind of player he is and they said that desperately needed a type like that – they were so positive and so enthusiastic so they took him but then they started winning without him, then it’s difficult.
For us he was a starting member but he didn’t show in the three weeks before the World Cup that he was fit enough, mentally fit enough and that he was sharp enough to start in the World Cup.
It was the same with Seol Ki-hyeon. I think nobody in England could foresee that Seol is playing as well as he is doing now. If you look at his time with Wolves, especially the last six months, he was never in the team. Could you have told anybody that a player who couldn’t play in a second division team in England is now one of the most attractive players in the Premiership?
How about Lee Chun-soo? He had a chance of a trial in England but he turned it down.
I didn’t know that until last week. I haven’t spoken to him about it but I can understand as he wants to go abroad.
Would he do well in England?
I think Chun-soo can play in any game, anywhere in Europe because he has many special qualities though he still has a lot to learn. A lot of coaches and teams would be very happy to have a player like that who is left and right footed, he can score goals and he can score free-kicks. He’s willing to work for 90 minutes. A fit Lee Chun-soo is for any team, except perhaps the top three in the big leagues, a good player.
Many Dutch teams would be very happy to have a player like him. The only problem is that we don’t have the money to have a player like Lee Chun-soo. That’s a pity because I still think that the Dutch league is for any player, especially from Asia, to show themselves and get used to the European level, is a good league.
Also there was Lee Young-pyo and his near move to Roma, what was your take on that?
I saw him play for Spurs recently in the right-full back position. I saw that the left full-back they bought from Lens in France was doing a very good job. I think that Young-pyo also knows that the left-sided position will not be easy for him.
I don’t know. I spoke to him and said “if you your future is at Spurs then you have to focus on the right full-back position because I think the left back is doing a good job.”
I have no idea why he didn’t go to Roma. He told me that it had nothing to do with his religion. But what the real reason was, he said ‘I will keep it to myself.”
Spurs bought a new right-back, a very promising, talented, right full-back ..
And expensive…
And expensive and I know the coach is really happy with his new signings but I also know that he was really willing to keep Young-pyo. I don’t see many players who can play left-back and right-back and have such a fantastic mentality.
How about Park Chu-young, do you think too much pressure was placed on his shoulders too quickly?
Yes – we knew that last year. Even last year we had our doubts but every ball he touched was a goal – he had the golden touch. Everybody knows also that after such a year it will be difficult – not only now but it already started in March.
From March to the World Cup he didn’t do well but we took him because he still had something special – he’s fast, he’s hard-working and he can score goals. We had our doubts before the World Cup?
What kind of doubts?
He wasn’t playing well; he didn’t score goals any more. He started not to play for the team but to go for his own chances which if you are feeling well is good but if you are not feeling well then you have to look a little bit more for your team-mates.
It was difficult for a 20 year-old player to continue at the same level. It’s not bad at this time for him to be out of the squad line-up and return to do what he’s always done, scoring goals for his club and getting his confidence back.
I’ve always said that we can use him for the next few years because he is one of our promising players. The question is how long he will stay in the deep hole that he is in at the moment. He knows – he’s intelligent. That’s the good part, he’s not acting as a star – at all. He just hangs around with the other players, working hard in training. The difference is that last year that everything he touched was a goal but this year it is going over and wide and to the goalkeeper.
One problem is that he is not a player for a three-striker system. He’s a two-striker system player where he has a free role and can run everywhere and be dangerous in front of the penalty area. So we have to change our system and use his qualities or he has to change.
Also Lee Eul-young has retired from the national team…
He said to me in the training camp that “there are so many good players – it is time for them now, they are good enough and getting better all the time, I want to focus on my own club.”
I told him that I respected what he said. I still think that technical-wise that he is one of our better players; he never makes a mistake when he has the ball. I said to him: “stay with us this week and let the young players learn from you.” He said no problem.
I respect his decision and I think he is right. The younger generation is growing very fast. He had a great career, he played in two World Cups and he played in Europe. He was a technical and very intelligent player.
Will the team miss him?
He is not a starting member any more because the younger players are coming. Everyone knows about the qualities of Baek Ji-hoon, Jung-woo, Lee Ho so they all have to fight and Doo-heon is showing himself. We have some 16 or 17 year-old players in FC Seoul, we have Oh Beom-seok who can play in several positions so it would have been difficult for Eul-yong to be a starting member but I always like that kind of player to help the younger ones. Especially in training, players like Ji-hoon can learn a lot from him.
What are your plans for the rest of the year apart from qualifying from the Asian Cup?
We're focusing on the Asian games. We have to make a quick decision about the Asian Games selection.
Are the Asian Games a big deal?
I think so. If you look at the possible selection then there are a lot of national team players, the more international experience they get, the better it is. A lot of these players will be in line to play in the Asian Cup and if you look at their age then they in 2010 they will be around 27 and the main part of the national team. Even if it isn’t the highest quality tournament, you still have to play international games and I like to have the team together.
But first we must qualify for the Asian Cup.
K.League News
Tags
K-League soccer football Pim Verbeek Korea Park Chu young Lee Young-pyo Lee Chun-soo
Copyright © John Duerden & Soccerphile.com
Read an interview with Pim's younger brother Robert Verbeek, presently coach of J-League Omiya Ardija for the 2007 Season.
Robert Verbeek Interview
Canon Word Tank V30
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Korea On Brink Of Asian Cup
They were both qualifying games for the 2007 Asian Cup but the similarity between Pim Verbeek’s first two matches in front of home fans as head coach of South Korea ends there.
The first was a high-tempo 1-1 draw with Iran on a Saturday night in front of 63,000 fans in Seoul World Cup Stadium.
The second was a stroll in the park with an 8-0 midweek thrashing of Taiwan in a half full Suwon World Cup arena.
The end result was the two-time continental champions needing just a point from their last two games in Group B – either at home against Syria in October or in Iran a month later.
Before the pair of games, the Dutchman shocked a few people by leaving 2005 K-League phenomenon Park Chu-young and World Cup star Ahn Jung-hwan out of the squad – though Ahn was probably the most shocked of all, especially after he had scored the first goal of Verbeek’s reign on August 16 in the 3-0 win in Taiwan.
Ahn wasn’t at his best in that game however, and his failure to find a club this summer has cost him his place in the team. After telling his European-based stars that they need to be playing regular football for their club teams, it was always going to be difficult for Verbeek to pick a player who had no club bench to sit on and Ahn’s comments that he might take a break for four months didn't give the best impression of his motivation levels.
At least the Lord of the Ring has finally been released from his contract with German club MSV Duisberg. He is now free to move anywhere but who knows what will happen? Nothing is ever simple with Ahn Jung-hwan.
If the player watched the Iran game, he would have seen a hard-fought clash against a West Asian team that had arrived in Seoul under some pressure.
A disappointing World Cup was followed by a change of coach but an unconvincing victory against UAE and a 1-1 draw with Syria haven’t made Amir Ghaleneoi’s new job any easier.
After already coming under fire from most of Tehran’s sixteen daily newspapers, it was perhaps understandable that the former Esteghal boss was conservative in his approach in the Korean capital. Team Melli got plenty of men behind the ball and looked to hurt their opponents on the counter-attack.
Korea had most of the possession and chances but lacked the killer final pass in the final third – how many times have we heard that before?
Seol Ki-hyeon finally put the hosts ahead on the stroke of half-time with a smart header but there was always a feeling that if a second didn’t come then Iran may not return home empty-handed.
The visitors came more into the game in the second half and in the last 20 minutes started to cause a few problems with Bolton Wanderers’ new midfielder Andranik Teymourian quietly impressive in the middle of the park.
It came with the very last kick of the game. Kim Sang-sik had lots of time to clear the ball from the right corner of the penalty area – too much time. The Seongnam defender changed his mind and was robbed of possession by Vahid Hashemian.
“The Helicopter” may be known for his skill in the air but he showed admirable coolness by immediately lobbing the ball over goalkeeper Kim Young-kwang who had been on his way out of goal to find out what exactly Kim was doing.
People say that in such a situation, a draw feels like a defeat. It didn’t seem to. The fans and media were disappointed but not too despondent as qualification for the 2007 Asian Cup was still very much on the cards. The feeling was just that of a good Saturday night ending on a sour note (or beginning, depending on your plans).
As one would expect, the Taiwan game was a walkover. The visitors'squad was made of students (even two high school kids), soldiers and company workers. They looked like what they were - amateurs against bigger, stronger and faster professionals.
It was 2-0 within four minutes thanks to Reading's August Player of the Month Seol Ki-hyeon and FC Seoul striker Jung Jo-gook. The two were at it again in the last two minutes of the first-half, getting another goal within a minute of each other.
Four more were added in the second half. Cho Jae-jin got two – interestingly, the Shimizu S-Pulse striker refused to let partner Jung, who was on a hat-trick, take the 83rd minute penalty that made it 7-0. It turned out OK though as Jung did get his third with two minutes left.
In the midst of all this, the increasingly impressive Kim Do-heon scored a fantastic 25 yard-half volley.
A friendly game with Ghana has almost been arranged for October 8 in Seoul, three days before the next Asian Cup qualifier with Syria.
Copyright: John Duerden and Soccerphile
Monday, August 28, 2006
Korean Coach's World Cup Thoughts
After two spells as “number three”, Afshin Ghotbi has returned for a third term in South Korea. This time however, he is the second-in-command behind new head coach Pim Verbeek.
The faces may be familiar but the situation is not. There is no longer a World Cup on the horizon but rather a chance to build a team from scratch, to lay the foundations of a healthy national set-up.
That future may be starting right now with qualification for the 2007 Asian Cup and upcoming games with Iran and Taiwan to think about but the recent World Cup, Ghotbi’s second with Korea and third overall, is still fresh in everyone’s minds. The resident of Southern California was in the thick of the action during those three intense games against Togo, France and Switzerland that ultimately ended with the Taeguk Warriors narrowly failing to progress to the second round.
The 42 year-old remembers the events of Germany well.” We set a goal of four or five points which we thought was achievable… When you look at it objectively and take all your emotions out of it, we showed well. But you can’t go to a World Cup into a tough group and concede a goal in each first half of the three games and expect to get out of the group.”
A win against Togo in the opening game was an historic first in an overseas World Cup though some parts of the Korean press, and the neutral spectators in Frankfurt, weren’t impressed with the way the team chose to defend its narrow 2-1 lead against the ten-man African team – spending the last minutes of the game choosing to keep the ball rather than attack.
Ghotbi is unrepentant and insists all the staff would do the same again. “Togo was dangerous from the beginning to the end in attack. We had to get three points from that game. Korea had never won a game in a World Cup abroad. Psychologically, those three points were so important.”
The team and fans then moved east to Leipzig and a date with eventual runners-up France. After spending much of the game on the back foot, the Asian team grabbed a 1-1 draw courtesy of a late Park Ji-sung equalizer.
“For us to get one point from that game was a great achievement,” Ghotbi recalls. “ They had some of the best players in the world – champions of great teams in the most important leagues in the world.”
That night in the Saxony city, the parties continued into the night as the 2002 semi-finalists looked set for the second round but the dream disappeared on a steamy Hanover evening and a 2-0 victory for Switzerland. The second goal came in controversial circumstances - with the majority of Korean fans and players believing the goal should never have counted – the new number two agrees.
“In my opinion, their second goal was offside and that really broke our back. In a game like that you need balls to bounce your way and they didn’t and you need calls to go your way. But we lost to a good team.”
Earning such a label for South Korea is what the coaching staff is planning to do. Ghotbi is an experienced analyst and knows the problems that need to be ironed out.
“Our final pass was poor, we needed too many chances to score goals, the backline has to play better football and we were not capable of it.”
In his third spell with the national team and a stint with K-League powerhouses Suwon Samsung Bluewings, Ghotbi knows the domestic set-up as well as any outsider. He points to a league that isn’t of the highest standard, overseas-based players that spend most of their time on the bench and Korea’s tendency to hype young, promising players as problems that need to be solved.
With a two year contract in place, there is a chance for Ghotbi to assist Verbeek in doing just that. During August the buzzword heard on the training pitch and in press conferences has been “intelligence”.
“I think the most important thing is we need to identify players who have a football brain and find a way to combine that with the fighting spirit of Korean players, the physical qualities, the pace and the energy.”
“The objectives are simple: Be number one in Asia by 2007, try to reach the last six or eight in the Olympics and then be in a position to go to the second round of the next World Cup.”
While the aims have been clearly set there is much work to be done to achieve them. Ghotbi has often talked about improving the domestic league, a subject that is receiving more and more column inches in the Korean press.
The K-League is not in a dire a state as some of the more excitable dailies would have one believe but it is clear that standards need to be raised on and off the pitch and not just for the sake of the national team. To that end, better communication with the domestic coaches is necessary – a relationship that would be two-way but Ghotbi knows what he would like to tell the K-League bosses.
“On the practical side, too many teams play defensively, too many of them play –and I don’t want to offend anybody -noodle football. There’s running everywhere, there’s a lot of energy, a lot of fight but very little organization.
“The K-League teams need to look at trends in international football – the ways of playing and the ways of training around the world - shorter training, more quality -more tactical, less running, running, running. We need football players, we don’t need just athletes.”
Copyright © John Duerden and Soccerphile.com
Thursday, July 7, 2005
Park Ji Sung
Busan I’Park are just two points away from clinching the first stage title in the 2005 K-League season.
The FA Cup holders remain unbeaten after ten games and with two games remaining are in the enviable position of sitting five points above second-placed Ulsan Hyundai Horangi.
Coach Ian Porterfield has turned I’Park into an impressive, effective machine who in 2005 seem to effortlessly pick up points wherever they go. In sixteen games in the K-League and AFC Champions League the south-coast outfit have won thirteen and drawn three.
Such consistency is based on a tight defence, well-supported by international understudy Kim Yong-dae in goal but the Busan success story is one of some unsung heroes of Korean football – Lim Kwan-shik, Lee Jong-hyo, Park Seong-bae and Doh Hwa-seong. These players can’t be seen at the national level, which is not something that will overly concern their Scottish boss, but have produced a number of impressive performances that will, barring disaster, give Busan the first-stage ‘title’.
Another plus point for I’Park is the performances of new foreign signings, Brazilians Luciano and Bobo who have slowly but surely settled in well and made important contributions to the team’s success.
A 1-0 victory at the home of Chunnam Dragons, courtesy of a Lim Kwan-shik strike has put the AFC Champions League quarter-finalists within a win of the top spot and a place in the end of season championship play-offs.
With both remaining games to be played at the Busan World Cup Stadium, not many would bet against the leaders staying in pole position.
Even if the required two points are not forthcoming both Ulsan and Incheon United would have to collect the maximum return to overhaul the leaders. Such a feat seems to be beyond United who are going through a rough patch at a bad time and have collected just two points from the last four games, leaving the sophomore club sliding down the table.
Still, United will be more than happy with the first stage in only their second season in existence and the performance of Jang Woe-ryong at the helm of the club bodes well for the future of the west coast club.
As Incheon have slipped, Seongnam Ilhwa have found their form with three wins in a row that have lifted the six-time champions into fifth place. It is much too late for Ilhwa to challenge Busan but the improvement means that the 2003 champions can look forward to the second stage.
The 2004 champions, Suwon will be looking forward to the next stage also but for different reasons as the opening phase has been a nightmare for the Bluewings who finally managed a second win of the season at the home of bottom club Gwangju Sangmu.
Coach Cha Bum-keun will need to win the second stage to have any chance of defending the title he won in his first season back in his native land; failure to do so will increase the pressure of the former Bundesliga star.
It is a similar story for FC Seoul, tipped by many to be Suwon’s challengers for the title. Injuries to the highly-rated Nonato and international duty for Park Chu-young have interfered with the capital club’s much-vaunted dream strike force and it has been Kim Eun-jung who has taken on the goalscoring burden for the LG-backed outfit. The team, formerly known as the Anyang Cheetahs, are yet another one under a lot of pressure to produce a dramatically improved second half of the season.
The same can be said, only more so, for Chonbuk Hyundai Motors, who only a few months ago were unluckily losing the AFC Champions League semi-final to eventual champions Al-Ittihad of Saudi Arabia.
The Motors have spent much of the season rooted to the bottom spot, a dismal record that cost Jo Yoon-hwan his job as coach. His replacement Choi kang-hee has a wealth of experience with the national squad but will have his work cut out restoring confidence to a decent team – though the 2-1 win at Incheon United will help.
Park Ji-sung to United
The protracted transfer of South Korea’s star midfielder was finally settled with the English club paying a reported $7.4 million for the PSV Eindhoven midfielder.
The Dutch champions did their best to hang on to the 24 year-old but the lure of becoming the first Korean to play in the Premiership and for one of the world’s biggest clubs was too much for the former Kyoto Purple Sanga star to resist.
Park returned to his native Suwon to open a new road named in his honour and admitted that his first challenge was to break into the star-studded side.
“ I welcome the challenge and know that I have to prove myself,” the versatile midfielder told reporters “But playing at PSV gave me confidence and I believe that I can do well in Manchester, too.’’
The 2002 World Cup star has much to do to displace players such as Giggs, Keane, Scholes or Ronaldo but the player will be happy just to play.
``I don’t care much about my position. What is more important for me is whether I can play in the game or not,’’ he said.
Park’s determination, engine and no little skill should endear him to the Old Trafford faithful as well as the manager and the Korean hopes to win them over.
``I don’t think I will become a big star like David Beckham just yet. Maybe I can if I was more handsome,’’ he joked. ``But I strive constantly to improve my game to become a better player, so I don’t think it is impossible to become a player like Beckham.’’
The Suwon-born star has come a long way since being turned down by his hometown club, Suwon Samsung Bluewings and is excited about playing for the two-time European champions.
“The facilities, the stadium, everything show why people call them the best club in the world. I felt so happy to be there,” he also had the opportunity to briefly speak to new boss Sir Alex Ferguson by phone. “It was a short conversation but he welcomed me to Manchester and said that he expected much of me.
The same could be said of his countrymen who will be watching his every move in the north-west of England.
K. League
The FA Cup holders remain unbeaten after ten games and with two games remaining are in the enviable position of sitting five points above second-placed Ulsan Hyundai Horangi.
Coach Ian Porterfield has turned I’Park into an impressive, effective machine who in 2005 seem to effortlessly pick up points wherever they go. In sixteen games in the K-League and AFC Champions League the south-coast outfit have won thirteen and drawn three.
Such consistency is based on a tight defence, well-supported by international understudy Kim Yong-dae in goal but the Busan success story is one of some unsung heroes of Korean football – Lim Kwan-shik, Lee Jong-hyo, Park Seong-bae and Doh Hwa-seong. These players can’t be seen at the national level, which is not something that will overly concern their Scottish boss, but have produced a number of impressive performances that will, barring disaster, give Busan the first-stage ‘title’.
Another plus point for I’Park is the performances of new foreign signings, Brazilians Luciano and Bobo who have slowly but surely settled in well and made important contributions to the team’s success.
A 1-0 victory at the home of Chunnam Dragons, courtesy of a Lim Kwan-shik strike has put the AFC Champions League quarter-finalists within a win of the top spot and a place in the end of season championship play-offs.
With both remaining games to be played at the Busan World Cup Stadium, not many would bet against the leaders staying in pole position.
Even if the required two points are not forthcoming both Ulsan and Incheon United would have to collect the maximum return to overhaul the leaders. Such a feat seems to be beyond United who are going through a rough patch at a bad time and have collected just two points from the last four games, leaving the sophomore club sliding down the table.
Still, United will be more than happy with the first stage in only their second season in existence and the performance of Jang Woe-ryong at the helm of the club bodes well for the future of the west coast club.
As Incheon have slipped, Seongnam Ilhwa have found their form with three wins in a row that have lifted the six-time champions into fifth place. It is much too late for Ilhwa to challenge Busan but the improvement means that the 2003 champions can look forward to the second stage.
The 2004 champions, Suwon will be looking forward to the next stage also but for different reasons as the opening phase has been a nightmare for the Bluewings who finally managed a second win of the season at the home of bottom club Gwangju Sangmu.
Coach Cha Bum-keun will need to win the second stage to have any chance of defending the title he won in his first season back in his native land; failure to do so will increase the pressure of the former Bundesliga star.
It is a similar story for FC Seoul, tipped by many to be Suwon’s challengers for the title. Injuries to the highly-rated Nonato and international duty for Park Chu-young have interfered with the capital club’s much-vaunted dream strike force and it has been Kim Eun-jung who has taken on the goalscoring burden for the LG-backed outfit. The team, formerly known as the Anyang Cheetahs, are yet another one under a lot of pressure to produce a dramatically improved second half of the season.
The same can be said, only more so, for Chonbuk Hyundai Motors, who only a few months ago were unluckily losing the AFC Champions League semi-final to eventual champions Al-Ittihad of Saudi Arabia.
The Motors have spent much of the season rooted to the bottom spot, a dismal record that cost Jo Yoon-hwan his job as coach. His replacement Choi kang-hee has a wealth of experience with the national squad but will have his work cut out restoring confidence to a decent team – though the 2-1 win at Incheon United will help.
Park Ji-sung to United
The protracted transfer of South Korea’s star midfielder was finally settled with the English club paying a reported $7.4 million for the PSV Eindhoven midfielder.
The Dutch champions did their best to hang on to the 24 year-old but the lure of becoming the first Korean to play in the Premiership and for one of the world’s biggest clubs was too much for the former Kyoto Purple Sanga star to resist.
Park returned to his native Suwon to open a new road named in his honour and admitted that his first challenge was to break into the star-studded side.
“ I welcome the challenge and know that I have to prove myself,” the versatile midfielder told reporters “But playing at PSV gave me confidence and I believe that I can do well in Manchester, too.’’
The 2002 World Cup star has much to do to displace players such as Giggs, Keane, Scholes or Ronaldo but the player will be happy just to play.
``I don’t care much about my position. What is more important for me is whether I can play in the game or not,’’ he said.
Park’s determination, engine and no little skill should endear him to the Old Trafford faithful as well as the manager and the Korean hopes to win them over.
``I don’t think I will become a big star like David Beckham just yet. Maybe I can if I was more handsome,’’ he joked. ``But I strive constantly to improve my game to become a better player, so I don’t think it is impossible to become a player like Beckham.’’
The Suwon-born star has come a long way since being turned down by his hometown club, Suwon Samsung Bluewings and is excited about playing for the two-time European champions.
“The facilities, the stadium, everything show why people call them the best club in the world. I felt so happy to be there,” he also had the opportunity to briefly speak to new boss Sir Alex Ferguson by phone. “It was a short conversation but he welcomed me to Manchester and said that he expected much of me.
The same could be said of his countrymen who will be watching his every move in the north-west of England.
K. League
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