A battle of nerves is heating up among Korean coaches ahead of a big match in Southeast Asia. The fight between Vietnamese coach Park Hang-seo and Indonesian coach Shin Tae-yong is exciting.
At 1:00 pm on the 8th, Korean time, a press conference was held in the meeting room on the 2nd floor of the Vietnam Football Association in Hanoi, in the second leg of the semi-finals of the’AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2022 (AFF Cup)’. Home team Vietnam coach Park Hang-seo and away team Indonesia coach Shin Tae-yong attended and expressed their determination to play. The two teams drew scoreless in the first leg at home in Indonesia on the 6th.
Head coach Shin Tae-yong of the away team went to the press conference first. Coach Shin expressed his respect by saying, “Vietnam is obviously a good team.” But he immediately showed his confidence. Coach Shin said, “After I took over, our team has stabilized considerably. Now, Indonesia is at about the same level as Vietnam,” he said strongly.
In fact, Indonesia’s AFF Cup performance has improved since the new coach took over. Indonesia, which was eliminated in the group stage in 2018, reached the semifinals in this tournament as well, following the runner-up in 2020, when Shin started leading the team. Unlike before, which relied on low-efficiency personal skills, ‘Shin Tae-yong Indonesia’ has transformed into a team that runs like a stick. Local fans in Indonesia also send passionate support to Shin.
Home team coach Park Hang-seo also has no intention of stepping down. At the press conference, coach Park Hang-seo launched a preemptive attack, saying, “The coach should show results, not words.” Then, coach Park surprised the reporters by saying, “If we lose tomorrow’s game, we will give in cleanly, but if we win, please don’t talk about it with your mouth in the future.” It is because the tone itself is different from usual, and the point where the arrow is pointing is the same Korean director.
After advancing to Southeast Asia, a subtle war of nerves is witnessed between the two coaches. A harmonious picture in a foreign country is not produced. The same was true for the first leg of the semi-finals of this tournament. After the match ended without a goal, head coach Park Hang-seo went to the locker room first and the two coaches shook hands or exchanged encouragement. Even at the press conference ahead of the second game, the order was different, so there was no chance to run into each other. The two are not even in contact with each other in private, so the battle of spirits seems to stand out. 토토
Of course, both coaches welcomed the advancement of Korean leaders to Southeast Asia. Coach Shin Tae-yong said, “I think (a Korean coach’s entry into Southeast Asia) is a good thing for the development of Southeast Asian football as well as Korean football.” Coach Park Hang-seo also congratulated, saying, “Coach Shin Tae-yong has the ability, and Malaysia coach Kim Pan-gon beat Thailand 1-0.” During the translation process, when the name ‘Kim Pan-gon’ was not heard, there was an incident where Park requested, “Please mention director Kim Pan-gon.”
In the 2022 AFF Cup semifinals, Vietnam (Park Hang-seo) and Indonesia (Shin Tae-yong) will compete for tickets to the finals on the 9th, and Thailand and Malaysia (Kim Pan-gon) on the 10th. Depending on the match results, Korean coaches may meet in the final. The fact that it is Park Hang-seo’s last tournament in Vietnam and the fact that the FIFA U-20 World Cup will be held in Indonesia this summer is working to raise expectations for this AFF Cup.