*This content was translated by AI.
In the end, all the arrows were directed at the young player. The coach, who should feel responsible for the poor performance and protect the player, publicly reprimanded his student, who is being criticized by public opinion.
South Korea's U-23 national soccer team, led by coach Lee Min-sung (53), returned home after finishing fourth at the 2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.
It was a huge disaster. Lee lost to Vietnam (2-2, PSO 6-7) in the third and fourth place matches, losing to the Vietnamese team (2-2, PSO 6-7).
It was also a series of humiliation. In the semifinals, the team collapsed 0-1 to Japan, which formed a squad for the U-21 team, and was also completely defeated 0-2 by Uzbekistan, two years younger in the group stage.
What was as painful as the result of the competition was the attitude of coach Lee Min-sung at the scene of his return home.
The controversy began shortly after the 3rd and 4th place match with Vietnam. Hwang Jae-yoon (23, Suwon FC), who wore goalie gloves on the day, posted an apology on his personal social network service (SNS). Hwang Jae-yoon, who did not predict the direction of seven kicks during the shootout, said, "I was not instructed by the coach and coach at all. It's completely my fault," he said, bending his head down.
Criticism could have arisen that the coaching staff did not prepare for the penalty shootout at all. About four hours after posting the first post, Hwang Jae-yoon explained, "There was no instruction, which means that the direction was my decision," but it was a happening caused by a young player suffering from malicious comments trying to bear all the responsibilities alone.
However, Lee Min-sung's response was cold. Coach Lee Min-sung, who returned home through Incheon International Airport on the 25th, pointed out, "Hwang Jae-yoon's SNS response is a bad behavior as a professional player."
He then took issue with Hwang Jae-yoon's behavior, saying, "The best way is to apologize and shake off the part to apologize and concentrate on your own exercise."
In general, a penalty shootout is a data battle. It is considered a natural duty of the coaching staff in modern soccer to analyze the habits and direction of the opposing kicker and provide information to the goalkeeper.
Regarding the controversy over the penalty shootout order, he also said, "If possible, we give the goalkeeper a choice. "I don't coach the coaching staff to throw themselves in a specific direction," he said. As a result, the coach stepped back from the responsibility for the defeat and only highlighted the inexperience of the player.
Hwang Jae-yoon is a proven prospect in the K League 1 stage. He was also nominated for the Young Player Award, making his debut at Suwon FC last season and performing a scoreless save against Gangwon FC. He started for the first time in the most burdensome 3rd and 4th place matches while sitting on the bench throughout this tournament.
Hwang Jae-yoon, who faced a harsh situation called a penalty shootout when his sense of the game was not perfect, suffered from guilt that he failed to prevent his team's defeat in the end. On top of that, coach Lee Min-sung criticized the 23-year-old player by saying, "It's unprofessional."
As a result, coach Lee Min-sung scolded the 23-year-old young player, who was struggling with the responsibility for the defeat, by calling for professional consciousness rather than comforting him. In fact, the manager's responsibility for lack of preparation for the penalty shootout or tactical defeat was omitted.
Both performance and results on the Asian stage have suffered disastrous failures, but only look ahead. Coach Lee Min-sung said, "I'm sorry for the bad results," but added, "I'll show a new look toward the important Asian Games." I hope you believe and wait for me to develop into a better team," he said, expressing his willingness to continue to take the helm.
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*This content was translated by AI.
