S. Korea's football association fires head coach Cho amid controversy

SEOUL, Dec. 8 (Yonhap) -- South Korean national football head coach Cho Kwang-rae has been fired by the local governing body in what he charged was a "nonsensical" move. Park Tae-ha, an assistant coach on the national squad, told Yonhap News Agency late Wednesday that Cho received a pink slip from the Korea Football Association (KFA). Park did not give any further details at the time. Early Thursday, Cho confirmed he'd been fired but said the KFA didn't take the proper steps to dismiss him. He said the association's technical committee, which reserves the right to hire or fire national team coaches, did not even hold a meeting to discuss his status. Cho said Hwangbo Kwan, head of the technical committee, alone gave him the bad news, without going through the committee. "If they weren't happy with the way I ran the national team, then the technical committee could have discussed it and explained it to me," Cho said in a phone interview. "If they decide, after talking things over, that they can't accept my style of coaching, then I can absolutely accept that. But it should never be like this." According to sources, Cho and Hwangbo met Wednesday afternoon in Seoul. When Cho was told he would be fired, he reportedly asked Hwangbo whether it was a decision by the technical committee or by Hwangbo himself. Sources said Hwangbo replied, "It's been decided by KFA's (four) vice chairmen." Cho also said he couldn't understand why the KFA was trying to put him and Hwangbo at odds. "This isn't just about me," Cho said. "No matter who becomes the national team coach and who gets fired, these moves should go through proper steps and procedures for the sake of South Korean football. National team coaches shouldn't be fired because of outside influences." Cho Kwang-rae had been under fire after South Korea's shocking 2-1 loss to upstart Lebanon in last month's regional qualifier for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, a defeat that put South Korea's hopes of advancing in jeopardy. At a press conference later Thursday, Hwangbo said the upset loss played a major role in the decision. "This past Monday, I met with senior KFA executives and we concluded that we couldn't reach the World Cup the way the team was playing," Hwangbo said. "We looked into the team's performance and Cho's managing of the squad. Then I sat down with Cho last night and told him he should leave." Pressed about the lack of the technical committee's involvement in the decision, Hwangbo said the committee hadn't been officially formed since he became head in early November. He also explained he needed to make a prompt decision before South Korea's next qualification match against Kuwait in February, and it needed to be done before rounding out the committee. "We're still in the process of picking new technical committee members," Hwangbo said, adding he and potential members did have one unofficial meeting where they discussed the future of the national team and Cho's status. "I regret that there are now questions about that procedure," Hwangbo said. "We tried our best to take formal steps, but I also felt that we needed to act quickly to stabilize the situation and take the next step. This was a major decision that we made to help Korea make the 2014 World Cup." Cho Chung-yun, chairman of the KFA, also explained that he believed South Korea couldn't reach the 2014 World Cup under Cho Kwang-rae. "I sought the opinions of our vice chairmen and they were mostly negative (about coach Cho)," the chairman said earlier Thursday. He was initially scheduled to appear at the press conference but gave way to Hwangbo. "Our technical committee was supposed to hold a meeting Friday but media reports are out already." As for Cho Kwang-rae's successor, the KFA chief said he will hire an experienced coach who can cope with the current situation. "If it's a capable coach, it won't matter if the person is Korean or a foreign national," Cho Chung-yun said. Despite the Lebanon loss, South Korea remains atop Group B on 10 points, with three wins, one draw and one loss. Lebanon also has 10 points with three wins, one tie and one defeat, but is in second place since South Korea holds the goal difference edge of plus-8 to minus-2. Only the top two nations from each of the five groups in the ongoing phase will reach the fourth and the final round of the qualification. Kuwait, South Korea's next opponent in February, is in third place with eight points, well within reach of the first place. If South Korea loses to Kuwait and Lebanon beats or draws the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the nations' final Group B contests, South Korea will be eliminated. South Korea only managed a 1-1 draw against Kuwait in their previous meeting in September. Lebanon, undefeated in its past four matches, is widely expected to beat the UAE, the only winless team in the group. South Korea is seeking its eighth straight World Cup appearance and ninth overall. In 2002, South Korea advanced to the semifinals of the World Cup, which was co-hosted with Japan, for its best-ever showing. Under Cho Kwang-rae, South Korea won 11 games, lost three and drew five others. He'd taken over from Huh Jung-moo, who guided the country to the round of 16 at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Before Huh, South Korea had gone through a string of foreign-born coaches, after the huge success of the Dutchman Guus Hiddink at the 2002 World Cup. The likes of Humberto Coehlo, Jo Bonfrere, Dick Advocaat and Pim Verbeek had varying degrees of success. Later Thursday, national team assistant Park Tae-ha offered to step down. "As an assistant, I am also responsible for letting the situation get to this point," Park said. "I will leave the team with coach Cho." Park has been a national team assistant since the 2010 FIFA World Cup, under Huh Jung-moo. His contract with the KFA is set to expire in July of next year. (END)