Jürgen Klinsmann is under heavy pressure after South Korea’s exit from the Asian Cup

Asia Cup

Jürgen Klinsmann wanted to win the title with South Korea, but had to admit defeat to outsiders Jordan in the Asian Cup. Now the German finds himself in the crossfire of criticism and it is quite personal.

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Had strong criticism Jürgen Klinsmann certainly expected, but then it got pretty personal. After the semi-final shock, the media in South Korea actually criticized the famous “Klinsi” grin; the pressure on the former national coach is increasing due to the exit from the Asian Cup.

Klinsmann’s face was “filled with laughter,” wrote Sports Hankook after the 2-0 loss against Jordan: “It was a scene that was extremely confusing, considering that he is the coach of the Korean national team.”

The press judges: “Shameful”

Klinsmann and Co. wanted to win the title and finish at the top of Asia for the first time since 1960. But the Taegeuk Warriors around defense chief Min-Jae Kim from Bayern Munich and top star Heung-Min Son (Tottenham Hotspur) remained pale in the tournament, sluggish and too indecisive. No wonder the reaction from fans and media back home was devastating. The team’s performance was “shameful” and “humiliating”, either a “disaster” or a “catastrophe”.

Klinsmann was also almost shocked. “We are disappointed because we had the big goal of reaching the final,” said the 59-year-old, whose contract runs until the 2026 World Cup. But Jordan was “more aggressive”. Especially in the first “30, 35 minutes we were almost non-existent.”

And so the favorite had virtually nothing to offer against the Jordanians, who were 64 places lower in the world rankings, apart from a header off the post. Son said he was “devastated” and apologized to the fans: he was “terribly sorry that we didn’t meet their expectations.”

Klinsmann is not thinking about resigning

The coach is “always responsible for how a tournament goes for a team. The goal was the final. We didn’t manage that,” said Klinsmann, who had been accused of spending too much time before the Asian Cup, as was the case during his time as national coach to spend in his adopted home of California. But the Swabian isn’t thinking about resigning: “I don’t plan to do anything. I plan to analyze this tournament and talk to the Korean association about what was good and what wasn’t so good. There’s still a lot to come Work ahead of us.”

Finally, the World Cup qualification continues again on March 21st. “This is a team that is developing,” said Klinsmann. And he received support from Son: The coach will become “even stronger” after the bankruptcy. But there will also be pressure on Klinsmann. (sid/ska)

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