Ex-national football coach Hong Myung-bo takes over K League's Ulsan

Hong Myung-bo, heading men's national football team for 2012 London Olympics, answers journalists during a press conference at Old Trafford Stadium in Manchester, England, in August 2012. Korea Times file

• Published Dec 24, 2020 3:08 PM KST
• Updated Dec 24, 2020 4:55 PM KST

South Korean football icon Hong Myung-bo was named the new head coach for the Asian club champions Ulsan Hyundai FC on Thursday.

Ulsan, fresh off their Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League title, said Hong will be their 11th head coach. Terms and financial details of the deal weren't disclosed.

Hong, who has coached the South Korean national team and a Chinese club before, will be leading a domestic league club for the first time.

"I've experienced virtually everything I could have in football, but there was always something missing," he said in a statement released by Ulsan. "I think that may have been coaching a K League team. The K League made me the man I am today, and I am grateful for the chance to coach Ulsan and contribute to the league. I'll try to set examples on and off the field."

The announcement ends days of speculation about Ulsan's reins after the club parted ways with Kim Do-hoon, their coach of the past four years, last weekend.

Ulsan finished runners-up to rivals Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in both the K League 1 and the Korean FA Cup this year, disappointing results considering Ulsan's deep, talented roster. Ulsan also ended up in second place to Jeonbuk in the 2019 K League 1 season after blowing a chance for their first title since 2005 on the final day of the season.

They ended the 2020 season on a high note by capturing the AFC Champions League title last Saturday, but it still wasn't enough to convince Ulsan to bring back Kim.

Ulsan will compete at the FIFA Club World Cup in Qatar starting Feb. 4 as the AFC representatives. They'll report to training camp on Jan. 7 and depart for Qatar on Jan. 28 or 29.

Hours before Ulsan's announcement, Hong said he was stepping down as executive director at the Korea Football Association (KFA) after three years on the job.

"I've done the best I could for the past three years, and there have been some ups and downs," Hong said. "Through it all, I've always tried to guide Korean football in a positive direction."

Hong, 51, was one of South Korea's most beloved athletes whose legacy was somewhat tainted by a disappointing coaching stint at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

He was the South Korean captain when the co-host country made a stunning run to the semifinals the 2002 FIFA World Cup. The then defender scored the decisive penalty against Spain that sent South Korea into the final four.

Hong coached South Korea to bronze in men's football at the 2012 London Olympics, the country's first Olympic medal in football, and then took over the senior men's national team in 2013, a year before the World Cup in Brazil.

South Korea took a quick exit from the group stage, with one draw and two losses. Hong resigned in the aftermath, and coached Hangzhou Greentown in China for a season and a half.

He returned home to become the KFA's new executive director in November 2017, tasked with overseeing the overall administration of the organization.

On Hong's watch, South Korea won the 2018 Asian Games gold medal, finished second at the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup and then won the 2020 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Championship, which doubled as the regional qualifying tournament for the Tokyo Olympics.

The 1992 K League MVP, who also played for clubs in Japan and the United States, is going back to where it all began.

"Though I've been away from the field for a bit, working at the KFA allowed me to develop a new perspective," Hong said. "I was able to see things that I didn't notice while I was coaching." (Yonhap)