*This content was translated by AI.
Document screening for the appointment of an interim coach for the South Korean national football team has concluded. With former Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors manager Gus Poyet, who had been among the final candidates for the 2024 national team head coach position, eliminated, attention is turning to other foreign coaches who showed interest in leading the Korean side.
The Korea Football Association announced on the 17th that it has completed document screening for applicants who responded to the public recruitment for an interim coach last weekend.
According to football circles, multiple domestic and foreign coaches applied for the interim head coach position, and among them, manager Poyet is reported to have been eliminated during the document screening.
Manager Poyet was one of the final candidates when the South Korean national team head coach was appointed in 2024. At that time, the Korea Football Association ultimately selected manager Hong Myung-bo.
Thereafter, manager Poyet took charge of Jeonbuk in 2025, forging a direct connection with Korean football. In his first season, he led the team to victory in both the K League and the Korea Cup, achieving a double crown. Although he parted ways with Jeonbuk at the end of the season, he once again challenged for the national team through this open recruitment for an interim coach.
He actively participated in assembling the coaching staff, even proposing a coaching position to current YonginFC Technical Director Lee Dong-gook, but this time his challenge ended at an earlier stage than two years ago.
With manager Poyet out of the competition, attention naturally shifts to other foreign coaches.
One of them is former Spain national team coach Roberto Moreno. Chinese media outlet Sina Sports reported that "Moreno submitted an application for the open recruitment for the South Korean national team interim coach."
This challenge is not the first for Moreno. After the 2022 Qatar World Cup, he also applied for the South Korean national team head coach position in 2023 while the Korea Football Association was searching for a successor to manager Paulo Bento. At that time, he showed considerable interest in Korean football and reportedly made concrete preparations.
However, the Korea Football Association at that time selected former manager Jurgen Klinsmann. Three years later, coach Moreno has once again thrown his hat into the ring for the South Korean national team head coach position.
Coach Moreno served as interim head coach of the Spain national team before taking on the permanent role, and subsequently built a coaching career at AS Monaco (France) and Granada (Spain). From 2023 to 2025, he managed Russian club PFC Sochi.
Other candidates mentioned include Domenec Torrent, who long served as an assistant to former Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, and Jesus Casas, who led the Iraq national team.
Earlier, Japanese sports media Sports Nichi reported that the South Korean national team head coach candidates had been narrowed down to three, naming Poyet, Casas, and Torrent. However, after it became known that Poyet was actually eliminated in the document screening, the credibility of that report diminished.
Both Casas and Torrent are Spanish nationals. In particular, Torrent played a key role as part of Pep Guardiola's coaching staff at Barcelona (Spain), Bayern Munich (Germany), and Manchester City (England).
From 2018 to 2019, he managed New York City FC in the U.S. Major League Soccer (MLS) as a head coach, utilizing formations such as 4-3-3 and 3-4-3 at the time. He later served as head coach of Galatasaray (Turkey), Atletico San Luis, and CF Monterrey (both Mexico).
Jesus Casas currently leads Lion City Sailors in the Singapore Premier League. He took charge last February and signed a contract through the 2027-2028 season.
Casas was appointed head coach of the Iraq national team in November 2022 and led the team until April 2025. In particular, immediately after his appointment, he guided Iraq to victory at the 2023 Gulf Cup, securing the tournament title for the first time in 35 years.
At the 2024 Qatar Asian Cup, he earned recognition for his coaching abilities by defeating Japan, considered a favorite, with a 2-1 scoreline. Casas is evaluated as a coach who controls matches based on possession and pursues aggressive attacks and high pressing in the front line.
The Korea Football Association plans to conduct online interviews with candidates who passed the document screening. The interview schedule may be adjusted during coordination with each candidate.
The list of interviewees will not be disclosed. It remains unclear whether Moreno, Torrent, and Casas have passed the document screening. The Korea Football Association explained, "Considering personal privacy protection and the ongoing nature of the current selection process, we will not provide detailed information on the status of document applicants or the identities of successful candidates."
Following the interviews, negotiation procedures will follow. Based on the results of the evaluation committee, the Korea Football Association will determine the priority negotiation order for candidates and proceed with formal negotiations starting from the top-ranked candidates.
The position of South Korean national team head coach is currently vacant. Former manager Hong Myung-bo, who led the national team since 2024, stepped down after taking responsibility for the poor performance at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America. South Korea was eliminated from the group stage with one win and two losses.
Prior to appointing a permanent head coach, the Korea Football Association plans to operate the national team under an interim coach system during the A-match period in September-October. South Korea will face Ecuador on September 24, followed by a match against Uruguay on the 28th. They will then play friendly matches against Venezuela on October 2 and Uzbekistan on the 6th.
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*This content was translated by AI.
