Park Ji-sung Doesn't Want A "Korean Patriot"
Park Ji-sung has made it clear that he wants another foreign coach to head the national soccer team:
Following the abrupt departure of Pim Verbeek (51) as manager of the national team the national soccer council has been unsure of whom to choose as the next manager. From Hiddink (January 1, 2001) to Verbeek (July 29, 2007) the baton has been passed among five foreigners for a total of six years and eight months, and contentions that a Korean patriot should be chosen are reaching their peak.
As to his preference regarding foreign managers, it’s because Korean soccer still hasn’t adequately absorbed advanced soccer. He said, “we’re still not following the advanced European system and we can’t just graft it onto Korea like a tree. So I don’t think it’s better to have a foreign manager right now.”
Asked what Korean soccer must do to improve, he said, “Korean soccer still doesn’t follow the example of the European club system,” and pointed out that “from the time players are kids they’re controlled by the system and their education is important so that part is insufficient. It’s because overall the national team just doesn’t have the power.”
I would think that hiring a qualified coach would be more important than finding a "Korean patriot", which is exactly how Park Ji-sung seems to view this issue.
*crickets*
I think it's more like he's trying to say that until Korean soccer is reformed and the national team has more power that it won't matter too much who the manager is. I've kind of been wondering about that for a while, since it's clear that the K-League often obstructs the needs of the national team, maybe a Korean manager would be better able to negotiate with them. Heaven knows the foreign managers haven't gotten anywhere with them.
I think they just need to hire the most qualified person that can implement a soccer strategy that suits the players the team has. Hiring just a "Korean Patriot" won't get the team anywhere. A qualified coach whether that person is Korean or not will.
You are right that where they need a "Korean Patriot" is to have someone stand up to the K-League and the other higher ups in Korean soccer that seem to routinely bump heads with the national coach and seem more interested in their own narrow self interests instead of what is good for the national team overall.
The answer's simple. Just have a national team separate from professional teams. The national team should be made of players who aren't playing in professional leagues. They would not be allowed to play in the pro's as long as they're in the national team. But they should be paid well.just like the pros. The advantage of this system will be that they can train together 365 days a year. Cohesion will be maintained throughout.
If you create a national team, how does that team compete? You'd have to create a "national" league so the participants can actually play against organized teams, instead of just prep and drill all day. And that's not plausible.
I'm not a big soccer fan, but unless the sport isn't well established, I believe most national teams consist of pro players. Even American soccer.
I don't what the problem is between K -league and the coach of the national team is, but…. After an apparent standstill since the 2002 glory, maybe they need to come up with a solution?
The problem is that the K-league does not want to give up their players to play in international games in a timely manner thus you have national team players playing in a K-league game and two days later in a international game with little practice or rest in between. There are other problems but this is probably the biggest.