Players rally around Klinsmann after Asian Cup loss

Korea’s 2023 Asian Cup journey ended in disappointment on Tuesday as a lackluster Taeguk Warriors lost 2-0 to underdogs Jordan in a semifinal to forget at Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Qatar.

Korea's Son Heung-Min looks dejected as Jordan knock Korea out of the Asian Cup in the semifinals at Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Qatar on Tuesday. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Korea’s 2023 Asian Cup journey ended in disappointment on Tuesday as a lackluster Taeguk Warriors lost 2-0 to underdogs Jordan in a semifinal to forget at Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Qatar.

It was a disappointing end to a disappointing tournament for Korea, spluttering out of the competition without a single shot on target against a side that theoretically sits some 50 spots lower on the FIFA World Ranking.

Jordan made short work of the Taeguk Warriors. Two goals in the second half — Yazan Al-Naimat in the 53rd minute and Musa Al-Taamari in the 66th — secured the win, but the score could have been much worse if it was not for a series of heroic saves from Korea keeper Jo Hyeon-woo.

Jordan's Yazan Al Naimat, right, scores Jordan's first goal in an Asian Cup semifinal against Korea at Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Qatar on Tuesday. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Jo — who deserves none of the blame for the two goals — was not Korea’s starting goalkeeper for the tournament, stepping into the No. 1 spot early in the group stage when regular pick Kim Seung-gyu was injured. Since then he’s saved Korea from a penalty shootout and proven multiple times that he deserves to spend less time on the bench and more between the posts.

At the other end of the pitch, Korea’s all-star offensive lineup was unable to do anything against the five-man defense, Jordan deploying the bodies in the box approach against Korea to devastating effect for the second time in the tournament.

The offensive prowess of Son Heung-min, Hwang Hee-chan and Lee Kang-in was rendered useless in front of the Jordan defensive wall, every attack puttering out before it could get anywhere near goal.

In defense, the absence of center-back Kim Min-jae — out with two yellow cards — was felt keenly, the back line constantly outpaced and caught flatfooted. The second Jordanian goal was a direct result of this, Korea giving the ball away with a poorly timed back pass.

A Korean fan cheers for the team before the semifinal match between Jordan and Korea at Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Qatar on Tuesday. [AP/YONHAP]

With the win, Jordan advance to their first Asian Cup final ever — against either Iran or Qatar on Saturday — while Korea head home empty-handed. That extends Korea’s long run without the title to at least 67 years, having last won in 1960 and with the next tournament scheduled in 2027.

Korea, and especially head coach Jurgen Klinsmann, are left with one big question to answer: What just happened?

Korea arrived at the Asian Cup with, on paper, one of the strongest teams the country has ever fielded. Captained by Tottenham Hotspur’s Son — a real, bona fide Premier League captain — with Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Hwang Hee-chan, Paris Saint-Germain’s Lee, Bayern Munich’s Kim and a huge supporting cast of Europe-based players, this should have been Korea at it’s very best.

But that certainly was not the case.

Aside from the opening game against Bahrain, which Korea won 3-1 with some proper goals, the Asian Cup campaign has a been a painful war of attrition.

The other two group stage games were draws — against Jordan and Malaysia — and neither of those were pretty. Korea only held Jordan to a 2-2 draw thanks to a stoppage time own goal, while against Malaysia it was a stoppage time penalty.

Then against Saudi Arabia in the round of 16 it was a stoppage time header that pushed the goal to extra time, keeping Korea in the game until a penalty shootout where Jo came through to save the day.

Fast-forward to the quarterfinals against Australia, and it was stoppage time magic again, this time another penalty, followed by an extra time free kick to secure the win. This time, that last-gasp luck ran out.

“I really don’t know what to say,” a visibly shaken up Son said after the game. “I’m really sorry to our supporters. We did our best, but we’re sorry for the mistakes that led us here.”

Over the next few days, a lot of criticism is likely to be aimed at Klinsmann, a manager who — fairly or unfairly — has been criticized throughout his career for a lack of tactical awareness.

Klinsmann certainly does have some questions to answer — what were the tactics, and why did they not change between the first and second Jordan game, for example — but the blame cannot solely be placed on the German manager’s shoulders.

Speaking after the game, Klinsmann quickly rebuffed any suggestion that he might be considering resignation.

"I am not planning to do anything," Klinsmann said. "I plan to analyze this tournament, go back to Korea and obviously talk with the federation about what was good and what was not so good in the tournament.

"I think there was a lot of good stuff that we saw. This is a team that's growing, a team that still has to develop toward the World Cup in the U.S., Mexico and Canada over the next two and a half years.

"A very difficult qualifying campaign, obviously, so there's a lot of work ahead of us. Other than that, I am not thinking about anything."

Korea's head coach Jurgen Klinsmann reacts during the semifinal between Jordan and Korea at Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Qatar on Tuesday. [AP/YONHAP]

While Klinsmann may face criticism in the press, the players were quick to rally around the manager.

"Even before the tournament, there was so much negativity surrounding the coach,” Son said. “I think he must have been under a lot of pressure.

“But he never once let it show on the outside as he interacted with us and took care of us. I was really impressed with the way he handled himself in such a difficult situation … He will go back to Korea and analyze this tournament, and I think he will build an even better squad.”

Son added the he would have to rethink his position on the national team, quickly clarifying before a shockwave traveled through Korea that he meant there’s no guarantee that Klinsmann will still want him.

Lee Kang-in also jumped to Klinsmann’s defense, offering himself up as martyr if fans were desperate to pin the blame on one person.

"We lost as a team,” Lee said. “And I don't think it's right to direct criticism at one player or the coach. If people want to take their shots at anyone, they can blame me."

Korea's Lee Kang-in, center, reacts as Jordan players celebrates after winning the Asian Cup semifinal at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Qatar on Tuesday. [AP/YONHAP]

The KFA have as much culpability. The association appointed Klinsmann, after all, despite some very public questions about his ability from prominent former players.

A general lack of development is also very much a KFA issue — a national team cannot survive by European players alone, and the lack of homegrown talent, particularly among younger players, is a constant concern for Korea. Remove Hwang Hee-chan from the equation, as was the case in the group stage, or Kim Min-jae, as in the semifinal, and it’s suddenly a very weak bench.

There are some individual players who struggled as well, the rescheduled timing of the Asian Cup in the middle of the European season likely not helping matters.

Korea stalwarts Hwang In-beom and Lee Jae-sung both had a bad tournament, struggling to fulfil a variety of midfield roles with fatigue clearly starting to impact on-pitch decisions. The absence of Jung Woo-young, the old reliable holding midfielder that Klinsmann cast aside in the last year, was also felt keenly, the lack of maturity in the center of the field very visible from the first game.

Out in front, Cho Gue-sung struggled to step into the sole striker role vacated by Hwang Ui-jo, who is currently suspended by the national team due to an ongoing legal investigation. While Cho struggled to produce in front, Lee Kang-in and Son were constantly frustrated by all-in man-marking that Korea clearly had no answer to, effectively shutting down the bursts of speed and fancy footwork the pair are famous for.

With Korea now out of the Asian Cup and with no FIFA international break ongoing, all Europe-based players will be expected to return to their clubs immediately to resume club football.

The K League players will return to Korea for preseason training ahead of the start of the domestic campaign next month, with their flight set to arrive at 9:15 p.m. on Wednesday evening as of press time.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]