Hwang Sun-hong not interested in double duty
For Korea’s two World Cup qualifying matches, Hwang Sun-hong was thrust into a difficult situation.
Hwang, head coach of the Korean under-23 men’s team trying to qualify for the Olympics, was named the senior squad’s caretaker manager for March. His job was to hold the fort for two matches against Thailand and keep Korea atop their group in the Asian World Cup qualifying tournament, while the Korea Football Association continued its search for a full-time replacement for erstwhile coach Jurgen Klinsmann.
Hwang did an admirable job given the circumstances, as Korea defeated Thailand 3-0 Tuesday night in Bangkok following a 1-1 draw against them in Seoul last Thursday.
After returning home Wednesday, Hwang said he is ready to shift his focus back to his day job. The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Championship, which doubles as the Asian qualifying tournament for the Paris Olympics, kicks off April 15 in Qatar.
Hwang insisted he is not interested in pulling double duty as coach for both the U-23 and the senior teams, as some media reports suggested he might.
“I have not thought about taking on both jobs,” Hwang told reporters at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul. “The U-23 team is coming back home tomorrow (from a recent tournament in Saudi Arabia). I’ll have to sit down with my staff for the next two days to finalize our roster, and time is not on our side. I will have to concentrate on that, and nothing more.”
Hwang gave kudos to the players for putting in the effort to come together as a team, even though they only had a few days to train together.
“Once the new coach comes in to take over, I think this team will be even better,” Hwang said. “I expect big things out of this group.”
Hwang acknowledged that being with the senior team even for a short period of time was a valuable learning experience for him.
“It’d be strange to say I am taking away some nice memories from this, because I still had to prove myself and bring home results,” Hwang said. “It was a difficult job but also a rewarding one. Personally, I learned a great deal. This will help me in my coaching career moving forward.”
Hwang had just as much to deal with off the pitch as he did on it. Last week’s match was played under a cloud of controversy stemming from a series of off-field incidents during the AFC Asian Cup. Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Lee Kang-in, after getting into a scuffle with captain Son Heung-min over a game of table tennis, apologized in front of cameras before the start of his camp.
In announcing the roster on March 11, Hwang defended his choice, saying delaying the inevitable — selecting Lee is never controversial in normal circumstances because of his talent — wouldn’t solve anything and he wanted to give Lee a chance to atone for his mistake on home soil as soon as possible.
Hwang’s decision was validated when Lee assisted in Son’s goal Tuesday night that gave Korea a 2-0 lead. Lee jumped into Son’s arms to celebrate, and Son later said he was just so happy to have shared that moment with the 23-year-old.
“It was exactly the kind of picture that fans wanted to see and I wanted to see as well,” Hwang said. “I was so proud of those guys. I hope they keep creating those moments. It’s up to the players themselves and the new head coach to continue to give fans hope.”
Without Hwang in charge, the U-23 team won the West Asian Football Federation U-23 Championship, after being invited by the host country Saudi Arabia. The coach feels the team still has more to give.