my timesThe Korea Times
  1. Sports

Ex-nat'l football coach Bento to leave Korea on Tuesday

Listen
  • Published KST
  • Updated KST

Korea head coach Paulo Bento waves his hand during his media scrum at Incheon International Airport, just west of Seoul, after returning home from the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Dec. 7. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

After a four-year tenure with Korea that included a trip to the knockout stage at the ongoing FIFA World Cup, Paulo Bento will leave his adopted country on Tuesday.

The Korea Football Association (KFA) announced Monday that Bento will fly out of Korea Tuesday night, officially ending his four-plus years in charge of the Taegeuk Warriors. The KFA said Bento is not scheduled to speak with media at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul.

Earlier this month, the 53-year-old native of Portugal coached Korea to the round of 16 at the World Cup in Qatar, for the country's third appearance in the knockouts. They began the tournament with a goalless draw against Uruguay and then suffered a 3-2 loss to Ghana. Bento's team then rallied for a dramatic 2-1 win over Portugal, which, combined with a 2-0 win by Uruguay over Ghana, sent Korea into the last 16 on a tiebreaker.

Paulo Bento, the head coach of Korea's national football team, captain Son Heung-min, as well as other players and coaching staff pose for a picture on arrival at Incheon International Airport, just west of Seoul, Dec. 7. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

Korea fell to world No. 1 Brazil 4-1 in the round of 16 last Monday but still returned home two days later to a hero's welcome.

Bento's contract expired after the end of Korea's World Cup, and he announced in the immediate aftermath that he had made up his mind in September not to re-sign with the team after the World Cup.

Bento was named Korea's bench boss in August 2018, and he was the longest-serving head coach in national team history.

He was largely credited with instilling stability and structure within the team, the missing ingredients from the two previous World Cups when Korea had undergone last-minute coaching changes. (Yonhap)