"Shocking news of the dismissal!"' Dismissal of Saudi head coach Hong Myung-bo, who was on a hippopotamus with coach Hong Myung-bo ahead of the World Cup → 0-4 defeat against Egypt is the decisive blow

*This content was translated by AI.

French national coach Erbernard (58), who took the helm of Saudi Arabia's national soccer team, seems to be eventually replaced. Coach Renard, who is familiar to domestic fans as he is mentioned as one of the candidates in the process of appointing Hong Myung-bo (57) of the Korean national soccer team, is now on the verge of leaving Saudi Arabia. The official announcement is yet to be made, but it is expected to be made soon.

The Ekchu SPL, which mainly deals with Saudi soccer news, quoted reporter Ahmed al-Azlan's SNS as saying, "Coach Renard's warm-up match against Serbia is the last game to sit on the bench of the Saudi national team."

The decisive background of the decision is the 0-4 defeat against Egypt on March 28. At a time when the team had to increase its organizational power ahead of the World Cup, its helpless performance and mass loss shocked the Saudi soccer community. On the 1st, the team collapsed as it lost 1-2 against Serbia. Including the results of the Arab Cup match in December, it will be the third consecutive defeat following the 0-1 defeat against Jordan.

In particular, coach Renard has only had 13 wins, 5 draws and 11 losses in 29 games since returning to the Saudi national team in October 2024, and criticism has been poured out that he is experiencing defensive instability, allowing as many as seven runs in the last three games.

Coach Renard was mentioned as one of the candidates when the Korea Football Association searched for a national team coach in the summer of 2024. Until Hong Myung-bo was finally appointed, there were many voices calling for the appointment of Renard among domestic fans. However, Renard, who was at the helm of the French women's national team at the time, chose to return to Saudi Arabia, and as a result, he faced a "shocking result" of being replaced before taking the stage in the World Cup finals. Prior to this, Renard served as the coach of the Saudi national team from July 2019 to March 2023, but he seems to be breaking up for the second time.

The Saudi Football Association must now find a new 'firefighter' in preparation for the 2026 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup to be held in June. Saudi Arabia will face tough opponents such as Spain, Uruguay and Cabo Verde in Group H. Time is running out for the team to reorganize and appoint a new coach who will cause an unexpected event among the strong teams.

Coach Hong Myung-bo has also been in a bad position recently. The South Korean national soccer team suffered a 0-1 defeat in Austria on the 1st following a 0-4 defeat in Ivory Coast, drawing strong criticism from fans after a helpless performance in two consecutive A matches in March. Coach Hong started with a heavy burden of "preferential controversy" and "procedural justification" issues that have arisen since his appointment, but he has lost trust by not showing tactical colors even after winning the ticket to the finals.

In particular, defensive instability and monotonous attack patterns exposed in away matches in Europe are in line with Saudi Arabia's situation. As Renard takes steps to replace him due to poor performance, the arrow naturally turns away from Renard at the time and goes to the Korea Football Association and Hong himself, who chose Hong.

Eventually, about two months before the 2026 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup, the two soccer powers in the Middle East and Northeast Asia encountered a reef called "command tower risk" side by side. With Saudi Arabia choosing to break up with Renard, attention is being paid to whether coach Hong Myung-bo will be able to complete the final stage by providing an opportunity to turn around the rest of the year.

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*This content was translated by AI.