S Korea coach Stielike on the brink after Qatar loss
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SOUTH Korea coach Uli Stielike said yesterday that he would “take the fall” for poor results that have put the country’s hopes of automatic qualification for next year’s World Cup finals in jeopardy, although he stopped short of resigning.
Stielike’s three-year reign as South Korea coach looked to be coming to an end yesterday after a 2-3 loss to Qatar in Doha, and the coach said he would accept whatever decision the Korean FA took regarding his future.
The 62-year-old former Germany midfielder had already been under pressure after two defeats in four qualifiers going into Tuesday’s match, where the team’s once all-but impenetrable defense was breached three times.
“I fully understand we’ve not been playing well of late and I think I have to take the fall for that,” Stielike was quoted as saying by Yonhap News Agency after the team returned from Doha. “I am well aware of the criticism of our team.”
Stielike said he had not thought about resigning and backed South Korea to hold on to its automatic qualification berth no matter who was at the helm.
The defeat in Doha leaves the Red Devils in second place in Group A of Asian qualifying, just one point ahead of Uzbekistan, with two matches left. The top two from the group get tickets to Russia.
“We’re just holding on to second place, and the general feeling around the KFA is that even if we do qualify for the World Cup, we won’t be so competitive if we play the way we have,” Yonhap quoted an unnamed “high-ranking” Korean FA official as saying yesterday.
Third place would offer a potential passage to the World Cup via a playoff against the team in the same position in the other Asian group, with another tie against a CONCACAF team to follow.
It hosts already-qualified Iran in their penultimate qualifier in late August before a crucial trip to Uzbekistan in the final round of matches in early September.
Japan coach Vahid Halilhodzic, meanwhile, was facing a performance review yesterday after a 1-1 draw with Iraq set back his team’s qualifying campaign.
Japan’s football chief was left fuming by the result in neutral Tehran, saying hot conditions were no excuse for the disappointing result.
“(The heat) is not an excuse. We could have potentially lost the match,” Japan FA chief Kozo Tashima was quoted as saying by Kyodo. “We need to feel fortunate that we took a point from here.”
The Blue Samurai took an early lead but they lacked intensity in the second half, when the Iraqis equalized in the 73rd minute.
Japan missed the chance to take a three-point cushion at the top of Group B, ahead of its final games against Saudi Arabia and Australia which are both just one point back.
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