Eliminated in the semifinals of the Asian Cup against Jordan on the 7th, humiliated by losing to an underdog ranked 87th in the FIFA rankings for the first time in history, collapsing due to repeated reliance on individual player abilities
The Korean national soccer team, led by coach Jurgen Klinsmann (Germany), lost to Jordan in the semifinals of the 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup, failing to win the title for the first time in 64 years.
Coach Klinsmann is criticized for losing for the first time in history to Jordan, ranked 87th in the FIFA rankings, despite having a team that is considered the best of all time.
Klinsmann lost 0-2 in the semifinal against Jordan held at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, at midnight on the 7th (Korean time).
As a result, Korea, which had been aiming for the top spot for the first time in 64 years since winning the second tournament in 1960, packed its bags without even reaching the finals.
The reason for the defeat in the Jordan match was the lack of detail in tactics and strategy.
Korea met Jordan in the second match of Group E of the group stage on the 20th of last month and drew 2-2. It is common to prepare even more when meeting an opponent you have already competed with once in the same competition.
The Klinsmann was not like that. Rather than preventing the opponent from doing what he was good at, Korea was unable to demonstrate on the field what it could do well.
The difference in the director’s capabilities was decisive. Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich)’s performance was so poor that it was embarrassing to make the excuse that he was absent due to accumulated warnings.
Coach Klinsmann carried out the same strategy he used in the group stage in today’s game.
He only relied on the individual abilities of high-level European players such as Son Heung-min (Tottenham), Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton), and Hwang In-beom (Zvezda). Fans described coach Klinsmann’s soccer by saying, ‘Please play soccer.’
Rather, the players were exhausted as the starting list was not much different from the group stage match against Saudi Arabia in the round of 16 and against Australia in the quarterfinals.
To make matters worse, both the round of 16 and the quarterfinals were closely contested, and the condition of key players was not perfect. Nonetheless, the strategy was the same as before. It was at a level that overworked the Europeans. Other starting players, including Seol Young-woo (Ulsan HD), were also unable to properly concentrate on the game due to repeated use.
But soccer is a team sport. Even if a player’s individual skills are excellent, if he cannot make organic movements, his ability will inevitably be halved. If there is a physical burden, it is difficult to make more organized movements.
Jordan attacked this part. We had already analyzed and targeted the patterns that the Korean offensive line could take, and considering that the Korean defensive line was shaky, we persistently dug into the space between the back four and the defensive midfielders. As a result, they scored two goals and inflicted a shock defeat on Korea. It was Jordan who achieved victory over Korea for the first time in history.
Jordan coach Hussein Amota said in a press conference after the game, “Korea is not an easy opponent, but our pressure in certain areas worked well. Coach Klinsmann is a good coach and I respect him and the Korean players, but Korea was less prepared than Jordan, as he said, “We were more effective.”
The responsibility lies entirely with Coach Klinsmann, who came up with ‘colorless and odorless’ strategies and tactics. Coach Klinsmann confidently spoke of winning, but he left Qatar empty-handed without achieving anything. 19가이드03