"I'll take full responsibility if I fail," says Jung Sung Chung, and why it's an empty promise
The Korea Football Association (KFA) has entrusted U-23 national team coach Hwang Sun-hong with the role of "interim head coach" of the A team ahead of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Asian Cup in April, where a ticket to the Paris Olympics is at stake. "If there is a negative result, I will take full responsibility as the chairman of the KFA," said new KFA chairman Jung Hae-sung.
The KFA officially announced that it has selected Hwang Sun-hong as the "interim head coach" to lead the Korean national soccer team for three months at 2 p.m. on March 27 at the Football Hall in Jongno-gu, Seoul, with the third meeting of the power strengthening committee chaired by Jung Hae-sung.
On March 21, the South Korean national football team will host Thailand in the second Asian qualifier for the 2026 FIFA World Cup North and Central America. Five days later, on March 26, they will travel to Thailand. On March 11, KFA officials will announce Hwang Sun-hong's roster for the match against Thailand.
Up until the first meeting, Hwang was not a front-runner for the job. There was a possibility that a full-time coach could be appointed immediately with the North and Central American World Cup in mind, KFA chairman Chung Jung-sung said during the first briefing.
But the mood quickly changed. When the name of a current K League coach was mentioned, the KFA was met with fierce criticism from fans, and the organization reportedly started the second meeting with a blank slate.
The KFA ultimately decided to leave the two-game series against Thailand in March to an 'interim coach'. The federation disagreed, pointing out that it would have to go through a number of procedures to appoint a permanent coach and that time was running out.
The KFA will hand over the reins to Hwang Sun-hong on an interim basis while it takes its time to find a permanent coach. It hopes to complete the process by May.
"From the second meeting, the negative reactions from soccer fans intensified. There were opinions that it is difficult to gain public support in such a situation. If we don't get support, it's right to change the direction. Even if it takes a little more time, we discussed it and came up with the idea of carefully selecting the right coach for the national team," he said. "That's why we decided that an experienced coach from the association should serve as the interim coach. After a second meeting, the candidates were narrowed down to three. On the 25th (1st), we offered Hwang Sun-hong the interim head coach position. Mr. Hwang said he needed time to think about it and accepted yesterday (26th). We had a third meeting today to convey his intentions to the members of the committee and collect their opinions. We also decided to continue the discussion on the next official director from the next meeting with a long-term perspective."
Hwang has two big jobs on his plate, and two at the same time. His immediate 카지노 focus is on the U-23 Asian Cup in April. After two A-match series against Thailand in March, Hwang would have to transition to the U-23 team immediately.
The U-23 Asian Cup is not a friendly tournament. It's a no-holds-barred tournament where teams must finish in the top three to qualify for the Paris Olympics in July. To make matters worse, South Korea is drawn in Group B with Japan, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and China, which means they have a tough road ahead of them and will need to be at their best.
Hwang Sun-hong will be taking a break from the team at a crucial time to build team cohesion ahead of the U-23 Asian Cup. "The coaching staff will be leading the Olympic team," Jung explained.
While it would be great for Hwang to lead the A team to a good performance in the March double-header and the U-23 Asian Cup, it's hard not to think of the other way around. Both teams could be in a bad situation.
Even with this in mind, the KFA reached out to Hwang Sun-hong.
"First of all, Hwang Sun-hong is a very capable coach after his performance at the Asian Games. Of course, we are worried that it will be too much. If there is a negative result, I will take responsibility for.... I will take full responsibility as the chairman of the power strengthening committee."
According to Article 12 (Appointment of managers, coaches, etc.), paragraph 1 of the National Football Team Operating Regulations, managers, coaches and trainers of the national team at all levels shall be appointed by the 'Board of Directors' on the recommendation of the National Power Enhancement Committee or the Technical Development Committee in accordance with the 'National Leadership Selection Standards'.
In other words, President Chung Mong-kyu and the Board of Directors make the final appointments, so Chung has no right to take responsibility as an individual. "I will take full responsibility" means that the only option is to voluntarily resign. His resignation has no power. He's just doing his job and disappearing. Even the "take full responsibility" was said after thinking long and hard after giving an answer that deviated from the question.
If the KFA wants to make a big splash this time around, it needs to fully support not only the A team but also the Olympic team.