World Cup coach Huh offers to resign

World Cup coach Huh Jung-moo on Friday announced his decision to resign as coach of the national football team, saying he wants to recharge himself and pursue academic activities for the time being.

Huh returned home earlier this week from South Africa after becoming the first native-born coach to lead the South Korean football team to the second round of an away World Cup. South Korea was eliminated after losing to Uruguay 2-1 in a group of 16 match on June 26.

"I want to have time to retrace my path, study what we have to do for the future and recharge myself," said Huh at a press conference in Seoul, wrapping up his two-and-a-half-year reign as national team chief.

"There are many great and capable experts in South Korea. I think I should step aside and give them a chance."

The 55-year-old took the helm of the national football squad in late 2007 after Dutch coach Pim Verbeek left the team.

His assignment was to bring home a berth to the 2010 World Cup finals for seven consecutive times.

He is the first South Korean leader since Cha Bum-keun led the team at the 1998 World Cup. During the decade, the top post of the national team had gone to Dutch coaches Guus Hiddink, Johannes Bonfrere, Dick Advocaat and Pim Verbeek and Portugese Humberto Coelho.

Making his national team debut with a 0-1 defeat in a friendly with Chile in January 2008, he had been criticized for "nihilism football," as his team had not made impressive victories during the Asian qualifiers.

The 2-0 win over Saudi Arabia cemented his position as the right person for the World Cup, shaking off a jinx that had prevented them from clinching a victory on enemy turf for decades.

After qualifying for the World Cup finals without suffering a defeat, Huh's team advanced past the group round with four points from a win, a draw and a loss, before being knocked out by Uruguay.

"During the World Cup tournament, I felt that our players lag behind the world's football powerhouses, especially South American teams," said Huh, noting that they gave up eight goals in four games, including a combined six to Argentina and Uruguay.

"We are competitive enough in terms of physical and mental strength and organizing ability. But technically it's impossible to win against them. Controlling and passing the ball, and the logic of the situation and so on."

"Whatever I end up doing, I really hope that Korea will be able to play on the international stage and I want to contribute to South Korean football in any way I can."

Huh, who was a famous midfielder in the 1980s, said he was happy when the team won the group opener 2-0 against Greece and sealed its spot in the second round in a 2-2 draw with Nigeria.

The Korea Football Association (KFA) will discuss Huh's successor next Wednesday for the upcoming Asian Cup slated for January 2011 in Qatar.

Chung Hae-soung, chief assistant coach for Huh's squad, and Hong Myung-bo, coach for the Olympic national team, are candidates for the position.

"Huh set a good precedent that a South Korean coach can make it to the second round," said Lee Hoi-taek, chief of KFA's technical panel. "We will also consider recruiting foreign leaders, as Hiddink and Advocaat had played major roles in South Korea's football."

The new coach is expected to start his term prior to the next friendly match in August, before taking on Iran in September and Japan in October.