Son Heung-min’s South Korea must win Asian Cup or it’s a failure, coach Jurgen Klinsmann says
- German says he believes his squad can win the competition for the first time in 64 years ‘because we have so much quality’
- ‘We have to aim for the highest goal, and if we don’t reach it, then it’s the fault of the coach – no problem,’ Klinsmann says
It’s all or bust at the Asian Cup for Jurgen Klinsmann, who has declared that anything but a first title since 1960 for South Korea will be a failure.
It is a bold target for a coach who did not win any of his first five games in charge and has never hit the same giddy heights he scaled as a player.
South Korean fans were sceptical about the legendary German forward’s appointment 11 months ago given his coaching record and he quickly came under fire following a poor start.
The 59-year-old former coach of the United States also faced criticism from media and fans who said he spends more time at home in California than he does in South Korea.
Results have improved but Asian Cup failure over the next month in Qatar could spell the end of a patchy coaching career which had fallen off the map until he took the South Korea job.