New Korea football coach Klinsmann determined to end Asian Cup drought

• Published date: 08 March 2023
• Publication title: The Korea Times

Jurgen Klinsmann, new head coach of the Korean men's national football team, wasted little time stating his goal for the team: winning.

"Our goal is to win the Asian Cup next year," the German football legend told reporters at Incheon International Airport early Wednesday, arriving in the country that announced his appointment at the end of February. "When you have a team and a history of the last 20, 25 years here, it was built by coaches like Guus Hiddink, Uli Stielike and Paulo Bento, I think the goal has to be winning the Asian Cup."

Korea's most recent Asian Cup title came in 1960. The next tournament will be played in Qatar in January next year.

Klinsmann reeled off names of some of the foreign-born coaches that had led Korea before him. Hiddink is the most successful of the group, having led Korea to the semifinals at the 2002 FIFA World Cup here. Then last year, Bento became the second foreign coach to take Korea to the knockouts, when the Taegeuk Warriors stunned Portugal en route to reaching the round of 16 in Qatar.

"You proved in Qatar that you can beat big nations. You beat Portugal in Qatar," Klinsmann said, and then added with a wry smile, "Four years ago (at the 2018 World Cup in Russia), you beat Germany."

Klinsmann was greeted by a huge throng of media in the early hours of Wednesday and said the reception was "overwhelming."

"I am very proud and very privileged to have this opportunity to come to Korea and work for the national team, and to hopefully have success," he said. "I think they've done a very, very good job in Qatar, and I hope I can bring even more success."

He has some history with Korea and Korean football. Klinsmann played at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, and returned to the country in 2002 to work as a commentator during the World Cup. He visited Korea again in 2017 to watch his goalkeeper son, Jonathan, play for the United States...