aroguy
05-11-2006, 10:59 AM
SEOUL : South Korea are determined to prove that their fourth place finish at the 2002 World Cup was no fluke.
The Koreans shredded the form book to post the best ever performance by an Asian team as they swept into the semi-finals before losing to Germany.
Yet in some critics' eyes their achievement was devalued by a string of dubious refereeing decisions in wins over Italy and Spain.
While some of the wilder conspiracy theories have never stood up to scrutiny, the Koreans would like nothing more than to silence their dectractors with a strong showing in Germany.
History is against them however. In five overseas World Cups, South Korea have yet to win a single game. That will have to change in Germany, where they face France, Switzerland and Togo in Group G.
Since the 2002 finals, they have only occassionally managed to find their best form, twice replacing foreign coaches hired to fill the void left by inspirational Dutch coach Guus Hiddink.
Hiddink's successor, Humberto Coelho, stood down after barely a year in charge while his replacement Jo Bonfrere, was axed despite leading the team to their sixth World Cup in a row.
Nine months before the finals Dick Advocaat was installed in the coaching hotseat, the third Dutchman to take charge.
Advocaat was also joined by two members of the back-room staff from 2002, former Hiddink assistants Pim Verbeek and Afshin Ghotbi.
The new regime has already helped restore some badly needed self-belief, Advocaat switching to a 4-3-3 formation that is popular with the squad.
Lee Young-Pyo, who plays in England with Tottenham, noticed a change immediately saying he could "see the difference with the players from November and now."
One key component in Advocaat's plans is Manchester United's Park Ji-Sung, who said he saw certain similarities with Hiddink. "Both are stubborn and have strong personalities," Park said.
"While Hiddink cared more for stability and defence, Advocaat likes to focus more on offence and is more aggressive."
The Koreans shredded the form book to post the best ever performance by an Asian team as they swept into the semi-finals before losing to Germany.
Yet in some critics' eyes their achievement was devalued by a string of dubious refereeing decisions in wins over Italy and Spain.
While some of the wilder conspiracy theories have never stood up to scrutiny, the Koreans would like nothing more than to silence their dectractors with a strong showing in Germany.
History is against them however. In five overseas World Cups, South Korea have yet to win a single game. That will have to change in Germany, where they face France, Switzerland and Togo in Group G.
Since the 2002 finals, they have only occassionally managed to find their best form, twice replacing foreign coaches hired to fill the void left by inspirational Dutch coach Guus Hiddink.
Hiddink's successor, Humberto Coelho, stood down after barely a year in charge while his replacement Jo Bonfrere, was axed despite leading the team to their sixth World Cup in a row.
Nine months before the finals Dick Advocaat was installed in the coaching hotseat, the third Dutchman to take charge.
Advocaat was also joined by two members of the back-room staff from 2002, former Hiddink assistants Pim Verbeek and Afshin Ghotbi.
The new regime has already helped restore some badly needed self-belief, Advocaat switching to a 4-3-3 formation that is popular with the squad.
Lee Young-Pyo, who plays in England with Tottenham, noticed a change immediately saying he could "see the difference with the players from November and now."
One key component in Advocaat's plans is Manchester United's Park Ji-Sung, who said he saw certain similarities with Hiddink. "Both are stubborn and have strong personalities," Park said.
"While Hiddink cared more for stability and defence, Advocaat likes to focus more on offence and is more aggressive."