After drawing 3-3 against South Korea in the final round of Group E on January 25, coach Kim Pan-gon angrily told Malaysian reporters at the press conference: “Yesterday they m ‘criticized and wanted me to be sacked, but today they congratulated me.’
In the first two rounds, Malaysia lost 0-4 to Jordan and 0-1 to Bahrain and were eliminated early. Therefore, before the final match against South Korea, Kim received questions about Malaysian fans and media criticizing his tactics and player selection. He was also asked questions such as “Do you feel pressure as Malaysia coach?” » and “do you think you can continue to coach Malaysia?”
For South Korea, the draw was a disappointment that sparked accusations that the team did not want to top Group E to avoid Group D runner-up Japan in the round of 16.
A Saudi journalist asked why coach Jurgen Klinsmann smiled when Malaysia equalized 3-3 in the 15th minute of added time against his team.
Klinsmann was unhappy with this question but responded that he never intended to avoid Japan and was somewhat bitter when South Korea missed numerous chances before the equalizer .
Previously, Vietnamese coach Philippe Troussier made a controversial statement before his team’s match against Iraq in the final round of Group D.
“I have read many comments in international newspapers. Many people can see that we are doing well, except the Vietnamese media.”
The French coach believes that the majority of Vietnamese public opinion and media do not support the team he leads.
The most serious incident occurred between coach Jesus Casas and Iraqi journalists after the team’s 2-3 loss to Jordan in the round of 16 on January 29. Some Iraqi journalists caused chaos in the press conference room after the match, threatening to attack the team. Spanish coach.
They said Casas had disrespected Iraqi fans and media by giving only short and simple answers. Casas was also accused of not focusing on the match against Jordan because he had a long television interview before the match.
Security officers had to escort the aggressive journalists out of the press conference room. In a statement on January 30, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) subsequently banned these journalists from covering the remainder of the 2023 Asian Cup, as well as future tournaments organized by the confederation.
The AFC also condemned criticism of the referees from team members and fans.
“These actions go against the spirit of fairness and respect that the Asian football community pursues,” the AFC statement said.
On January 30, it was coach Roberto Mancini’s turn to be criticized. He went into the tunnel early after Abdulrahman Ghareeb missed the fourth penalty, which sent Saudi Arabia losing 2-4 to South Korea in the round of 16.
South Korean News Agency Yonhap described Mancini’s action as “an abandonment” of the team during a difficult period. Saudi Football Federation president Yasser Al-Misehal expressed his disappointment with Mancini in a statement. The Italian coach’s future with Saudi Arabia is now more uncertain than ever, as there have been many disagreements between him and the top management in the past.
