February 16 – Jurgen Klinsmann has been fired as head coach of South Korea after less than a year following a humbling Asian Cup semi-final exit to underdogs Jordan and reports of infighting among players.
Klinsmann was under mounting criticism for the team’s underwhelming performances in Qatar after and the pressure intensified following media reports of a spat between captain Son Heung-min and young Paris St Germain star Lee Kang-in.
In a blunt statement the South Korean FA did not mince its words after the country’s wait for a third title in Asian football’s most prestigious tournament was extended to 64 years.
“The KFA has decided to change the national head coach following a comprehensive review,” Korea Football Association president Chung Mong-gyu said.
“Klinsmann has failed to display managerial capability and leadership expected of a national head coach in areas ranging from tactics, personnel management to work attitude and others required to bring about competitiveness to the team.
“Klinsmann’s attitude and competitiveness as head coach has fallen short of people’s expectations and it was agreed that this would not be improved going forward, so we have decided to change leadership ahead of 2026 World Cup qualifying games.”
“We decided that Klinsmann was unlikely to improve as head coach, in terms of his abilities and work ethic.”
Klinsmann, who won the World Cup as a player with Germany and has also coached his national team and that of the United States, said it had been “an incredible journey” and thanked South Korea’s players in a post on social media just before the axe fell.
In what appeared to be a staunch defence of his management, he pointed to his unbeaten record in the build-up to Qatar.
“Thank you so much for all your support taking us to the semi-final of the Asian Cup and an incredible journey over the last 12 months with not losing 13 games in a row before the semi-final,” he wrote.
But performances nosedived when it mattered most and the fact is he never won over the South Korean fans or media, refusing to move from his home in the United States.
Then on Wednesday came revelations about a fracas between players that left Son Heung-min with two of his fingers strapped together on the eve of the 2-0 loss to Jordan.
Even before that the Koreans, one of the tournament favourites, had been on the verge of humiliation, only to find either last-ditch goals or penalties to save themselves.
Chung said that the altercation between certain players had “occurred after a run of very difficult games physically and emotionally amid more than a month-long group training”.
But even so, the KFA felt “this incident reflects a lot to us for areas to pay attention to when it comes to managing a national team going forward”.
“The KFA will right away embark on finding the next head coach for the upcoming 2026 World Cup qualifiers.”
Chung added there was no ready-made replacement for Klinsmann, whose contract was set to run until the end of the 2026 World Cup. South Korea’s qualification campaign for that tournament continues in March with back-to-back games against Thailand.
“Rather than going into every detail and discussing who did what and how, we will use this as an opportunity to discuss with the new coach ways to help the young players grow further and become a team.” Chung said.
The KFA’s technical director Hwangbo Kwan said the infighting definitely affected the players against Jordan.
“There were opinions that Klinsmann failed to show his resolve to find new talent and that he failed to grasp internal conflict or mood among squad members,” Hwangbo said. “Also, there were opinions that Klinsmann has been disrespectful toward the Korean public by not spending enough time in the country.”
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