"It will come out eventually": Former coach Hong Myung-bo boards flight to the U.S. just two days after returning home... "There was no internal conflict within the national team"

*This content was translated by AI.

Former South Korean national football team coach Hong Myung-bo is reported to have boarded a flight to the United States just two days after returning home. When asked about what he has to say, Hong replied, "I do have things to share, and they will come out properly at some point," choosing to hold back further details.

According to MBC on the 2nd, former coach Hong departed for the U.S. through Incheon International Airport that day.

The South Korean national team led by former coach Hong received a poor performance record at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America and the Caribbean. South Korea was drawn into Group A alongside Mexico, Czechia, and South Africa. Being grouped with competitive opponents led to expectations of a high chance of advancing to the knockout stage. However, South Korea managed only one win and two losses, failing to advance from the group stage.

After it became clear that the team would not advance from the group stage, former coach Hong announced his resignation, taking responsibility for the poor results. On June 30, he returned home along with some players including Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain) and Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich). At the airport, football fans gathered to launch fierce criticism toward former coach Hong.

Former coach Hong boarded another flight to the U.S. just two days after returning home. In an interview with MBC, he addressed rumors of internal conflict within the national team following the World Cup: "There was no internal conflict among the players as a whole. As I mentioned back then, there was no overall internal conflict."

He added, "I do have things to share, and they will come out properly at some point," avoiding specific details.

Former coach Hong also commented on Jens Casteel, who had limited playing time with the national team. Casteel currently plays for Borussia Mönchengladbach in Germany's Bundesliga. His positions are midfielder and fullback. However, during this World Cup, he was outcompeted within the national team and made only one appearance as a substitute in the second half against South Africa. Some have claimed that Casteel was excluded from former coach Hong's plans due to violations of team discipline.

However, regarding allegations of disciplinary violations by Casteel, former coach Hong drew a clear line: "There was absolutely nothing like that."

This World Cup will remain another source of regret for former coach Hong. He previously led the South Korean national team at the 2014 Brazil World Cup but also failed to advance from the group stage with one draw and two losses. After a decade, he took charge of the national team again to compete in the North America and Caribbean World Cup, but could not avoid the same outcome.

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*This content was translated by AI.