By Kang Seung-woo
Staff Reporter
Pim Verbeek's stint with the South Korean national football team will not come to an end despite a disappointing loss to Iraq in the Asian Cup semifinals.
The Korea Football Association (KFA) said that it doesn't have any plan to release the Dutch coach.
``The Asian Cup is not over yet. As Korea has to battle against Japan Saturday for third place, we need to encourage him, not disturb him,'' KFA secretary general Ka Sam-hyun said after the semifinal match.
Lee Young-moo, chairman of the technical committee, was also negative on removing Verbeek when Korea sneaked into the quarterfinal with a record of 1-1 with one draw, saying, ``It is an issue to talk about after the Asian Cup.''
KFA president Chung Mong-joon backs Verbeek.
``We cannot win and score in every single match,'' he said in a media interview.
In the post-game press conference, Verbeek shared the same opinion with the KFA.
``I made my decision already but I am not going to say what it is because I want to keep the Korean people excited for the next couple of days,'' he said.
``But if the Korean fans think we didn't play a good tournament, they must have a different vision of playing international football.
``If people think that it's not enough that's okay because I have no problem with that.''
However, during the Asian Cup, the football governing body found the national squad to be knocked by Korean football fans due to its poor performances.
Although several key players like Premiership trio Park Ji-sung, Seol Ki-hyeon and Lee Young-pyo and veteran defender Kim Nam-il missed the quadrennial football contest due to injuries, Verbeek's side managed to net three goals in five games, depending on monotonous offensive patterns and low athleticism.
As a matter of fact, the KFA fired manager Johannes Franciscus Bonfrere due to deteriorated public opinion caused by the national team's sloppy play.
Since last August, Verbeek has led the Olympic football team as well as the national team.
When he took control, he suggested three things he wanted to achieve within his term _ Winning the Asian Cup, claiming a gold medal in the Doha Asian Games and advancing the final round of the Beijing Olympics.
South Korea lost to Iraq in the semifinal of the Asian Games.
He has already tasted setbacks in the first two of his ambitions and the last is brewing.
The final qualifying round for the Beijing Olympics starts next month.
If the KFA plans to change coaches, it will be tough to find an experience leader within one month.