Klinsmann says he has no plan to resign, fueling public anger

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup 2023 quarterfinal match between South Korea and Jordan at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, on Saturday. Head coach Jurgen Klinsmann awaits the start of the match. Yonhap News Agency

Korea’s head coach Jurgen Klinsmann said he has no plan to resign even after Korea lost in the semifinals of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup in Qatar on February 7. The results of the tournament were, of course, not good, and the coach did not take responsibility for the poor performance at the competition, sparking public criticism.

Korea ended the tournament with a 0-2 loss in the semifinals of the 2023 Asian Cup against Jordan on Wednesday. The result was disappointing, but the performance was even more so. Korea had eight shots on goal, but none of them were on target. Jordan had 17 shots on goal, including seven in the box. . Had it not been for goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo’s excellent blocking, the match could have ended with disastrous scores of 0-3 or 0-4.

When asked whether he would take responsibility for the result at a post-match press conference, Klinsmann said, "A coach is always responsible for how a tournament goes for a team. Absolutely. Our goal was to get into the final and we didn't get into the final.” After referring to the previous wins against Saudi Arabia and Australia, he praised Jordan, saying, "You have to accept it, you accept the result like this. It happens because Jordan today deserved that result."

In response to a foreign journalist's suggestion that his dismissal could be on the table, Klinsmann answered, "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. 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.”

Before the Asian Cup, Klinsmann was criticized for his remote work, lack of tactics, and disappointing performance. But he emphasized that his “goal is to win the Asian Cup," and that he would show it with a result.

However, he failed to show the desired results or performance, and replaced “responsibility” with “analysis.” In online football communities, there are a flood of posts saying that Klinsmann should be dismissed before it is too late. The Korean national team should now start preparing for the 2026 World Cup in the U.S., Mexico and Canada. The second round of regional qualifiers against Thailand is set to be held on March 24. If Klinsmann continues his work as Korea’s head coach, he will begin calling up Korean national footballers for the qualifier from February 18.

The arrows of criticism also point to the Korean Football Association, as the appointment process of the head coach has been noisy. Klinsmann has already been labeled as a failed coach at various national football teams and clubs. Many soccer fans suspect that Chung Mong-kyu, the president of the Korean Football Association, who has a penchant for star players, may have chosen Klinsmann, who was not even on the shortlist.

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.