Klinsmann’s team is in a ‘state of emergency’ ahead of their first European trip. A series of injuries have left key players unavailable for selection. This is compounded by the recent actions of head coach Jürgen Klinsmann (GER), who has been embroiled in a ‘foreign oil controversy’ and has been heavily criticized for neglecting his job.
Klinsmann’s side will face Wales on Sept. 8 in South Korea, followed by Saudi Arabia five days later. It will be his first trip to Europe since taking over in March. However, it is an ’emergency’ as a series of injuries to key players have been reported ahead of the September A match.
First, Oh Hyun-kyu (Celtic) was diagnosed with calf pain and could be out for four to six weeks. Next, Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain) and Cho Kyu-sung (Mitwillan) were added to the injury list with left quadriceps and thigh injuries, respectively. And last weekend, Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton Wanderers) pulled a hamstring.
It has already been officially announced by Paris Saint-Germain that Lee will be out until after the A-League season in September. Oh Hyun-gyu is virtually impossible to call up given his recovery time, and Hwang Hee-chan is also expected to be ruled out due to his nagging hamstring injury. Cho Kyu-sung has a minor injury and is expected to join the team, but we’ll have to wait and see.
With the loss of key players to injury, Klinsmann needs to find a replacement. However, with Klinsmann’s recent ‘extramarital affair’ controversy and his seeming neglect of his job, it’s hard to know if he’ll be able to find a suitable replacement.
In fact, Klinsmann has spent more time abroad than in Korea since his appointment. After taking a month-long overseas vacation after the A-Match in June, he left again on the first of this month to celebrate his birthday and attend a charity event. He is currently still abroad.
Of course, he has spent some time checking on the European side and attending the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup group draw. However, he has spent more time on unnecessary activities that are not related to the national team, such as attending events and giving interviews to foreign media.
Furthermore, Klinsmann has stated that he will not hold any press conferences related to player selection from this call-up. “The announcement of the roster for the September A-match will be distributed through a press release,” the Korean Football Association (KFA) said. This means that the press conference is no longer an opportunity to discuss the selection process, background, and specific tactical systems and methods.
It would be great if Klinsmann had a backup plan, but the general consensus in the soccer world is that it’s unlikely. Not only is it unclear whether Klinsmann will be able to find a replacement due to neglecting his duties as a national team coach, but it is also unlikely that he will be able to significantly improve the poor performance of the team since his appointment, as he has not shown any clear tactical colors.
In particular, some are wondering whether Klinsmann, who is in charge of organizing the national team’s tactics and directing the game, will be able to properly utilize the new faces selected by the coaches in a short time, as he has not spent much time watching the K League on the field. In fact, when he selected Ahn Hyun-beom in June, he called him up without seeing him play in person, and in the end, he was unable to clearly identify the player’s characteristics, leaving questions about how to utilize him.
Klinsmann did not win a match in March (Colombia-Uruguay) and June (Peru-El Salvador). They drew two and lost two. In doing so, Klinsmann broke the record for the most “dishonorable” wins by a foreign manager, held by former coach Gus Hiddink (Netherlands).메이저사이트
With the negativity growing, Klinsmann now needs to prove himself with a win. If he fails to win the September A match between Wales and Saudi Arabia, the criticism will only intensify and fans will call for his dismissal. It will be interesting to see if Klinsmann can pull the team out of the ‘state of emergency’ following a string of injuries to key players.