The Korea Football Association (KFA) announced on the 20th that it has decided to play two games of the second Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-Central America World Cup in June under the provisional coach system, and appointed Kim Do-hoon (54), former Ulsan HD coach as the provisional head coach.
Initially, the KFA selected candidates with weight on the appointment of foreigners, and Chairman Chung went abroad to conduct in-person interviews, but eventually established a temporary supervisory system once again following March.
“It’s unfortunate that we couldn’t keep the appointment period by early or mid-May, but we needed to prepare for the June A match without any problems,” a KFA source said. “We still have time to prepare for the future (with the appointment of the interim head coach). I didn’t think we need to be chased too much.”
In a telephone interview with News 1, Chairman Chung Hae-sung also said, “Since negotiations with foreign coaches who were considered candidates had all collapsed, we had no other choice but to conduct temporary supervision,” adding, “We selected four Korean leaders as temporary directors, and asked one of them, Kim Do-hoon, to visit his house in Pangyo to ask for his help. Kim accepted the offer after a day of consideration.”
Ultimately, the ‘big picture’ of leaving the baton to a foreign head coach is maintained.
Chairman Chung said, “We will start from zero base again. I have some free time. As I failed to keep my previous promise to select the person by May, I will make even more efforts to appoint the best person.”
“By the end of June, the European season or competitions will be over, so more talent pool may be prepared,” he said, adding, “We will carefully consider and select a good coach that suits us best.”
The national team is set to play away to Singapore on June 6 and home against China on June 11.
BY: 스포츠토토