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Uli Stielike gives more Importance to practicality

The Korean players, who play their Football in the top tiers in European countries, you would normally believe that they are straight in the national squad just because of the reputation of the clubs they are part of.

But, in the reign of Uli Stielike, from what he has hinted, it seems the practicality will be given more importance than reputation.

Stielike has given the impression that it would not matter a lot to him which leagues the players are showcasing themselves in and what he would instead pay the attention to while selecting the squad is which player has how much of game practice.

Stielike believes regular match practice is what increases a player’s chance of being selected as only then can he be supposed to be the most sharp. Those who are not spending enough time on the pitch, the ferocity goes out of them and then even the fact that they are in England or wherever, it doesn’t make them the strongest of the contenders for the selection.

However, it’s easier said than done. Such comments have come from the other coaches too before, but, when it comes to the point where the team has to be selected, everybody shies away from dropping the stars. And, especially when World Cup qualification is on the line, it would be very, very brave on the part of Stielike to do that.

Yes, Stielike’s perspective is correct regarding game practice, but, then you have to see the order of the skills of the players too. Somebody, who is a match winner, and is a class above some of your other players, to ignore him, as a coach, is very difficult.

Ki, for example, skipper of the side and easily one of the best players too, how can he be dropped even if he is not a Swansea regular right now?

Uli Stielik claims that he is not looking beyond the upcoming World Cup qualifiers

South Korea manager Uli Stielike claims that he is not looking beyond the upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

The South Korean FA is reportedly looking to schedule some high profile friendlies in June. Even though the European Championship 2016 will be underway, South Korea have a number of opponents that they would like to play.

South Korea manager Uli Stielike claims that he is not looking beyond the upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

This will also be the time of the Olympics and a number of talented youngsters will be unavailable. Perhaps for this reason,Stielike his only focusing on the upcoming World Cup qualifying matches for his team. Korea have been in impeccable form as far as World Cup qualifying is concerned.

They have won all their six matches until now. Hence, the team is overwhelming favourites to continue this good run when they meet Lebanon at home on March 23. This match will be followed by a friendly against Thailand away from home. Some of the friendlies that have been scheduled in June include the games against Spain and Czech Republic.

Even though Spain are not the force that they once were,Stielike is confident that this game will significantly help the national team make some great strides. Czech Republic are ranked 25th in the world and they have failed to qualify for some international tournaments, and they are being backed by Jenny Campbell to make it into the next round.

“We do have two World Cup qualifiers in March, and I won’t overlook them just to start thinking about June.I think the top priority should be to respect our opponents for March and get ready for them accordingly. Against Lebanon and Kuwait, I may be able to use players who haven’t had a chance to compete of late. By doing that, they can regain their form and also grow more confident. People tend to think that the next step for players after the U-23 team is to make the senior team,” said Stielike.

Uli Stielike’s stint in charge of South Korea has been outstanding

It’s been around 1 year and 4 months since Uli Stielike was appointed as the head coach of the South Korean national football team and so far it has been a very impressive period of time for the German coach as he has collected a string of victories and only suffered a few amount of defeats.

2015 has undoubtedly been a memorable year for the South Korean national football team after securing 16 games from their total 20 which were played.

This is a huge turn of events for the national side which was going through a disastrous period of time back in 2014 when South Korea was knocked out in the group stages of the World Cup of that year and <a href="http://www.thomasvermaelen.co.uk".Hong Myung-Bo subsequently decided to resign from his coaching position of the national team.

After Hong Myung-Bo resigned, Uli Stielike was selected as the new coach and the German coach has turned things around for South Korea with impressive performances and important triumphs.

Even though the German coach Uli Stielike is the man who has received most praise for this sudden turnaround of the South Korean team, Stielike has given all the credit to his players and praised his team for everything they have accomplished in this year.

“If I had to sum up the year in one word, it’d be ‘satisfaction. Looking back on the year, I think we met our expectations. And I am also grateful for the players’ efforts. I tip my hat to them for everything they did this year.” This was the statement that was released by Uli Stielike during his last press conference of 2015 which was held in Seoul.

Uli Stielike is hoping that his team can continue their form throughout the upcoming few years and eventually go on to win major international titles, one of the biggest pieces of silverware is that the South Korean team is aiming to win is the AFC Asian Cup which they haven’t won since 1960. They came close on lifting it in 2015 but had to settle with a 2nd place spot and the next edition of the Asian competition is scheduled to take place on 2019.

Uli Stielike believes his boys played up to his expectations in 2015

Uli Stielike believes his boys played up to his expectations in 2015.

Stielike was given the charge of South Korea post the previous World Cup which was hugely disappointing for the team.

The Reds had suffered two defeats in the initial phase of the tournament itself and had got eliminated.

Hong Myung-Bo, the then manager had to bear the consequences as he had been handed the axe straightaway and Stielike was slotted in.

Uli Stielike believes his boys played up to his expectations in 2015.

Stielike was given the charge of South Korea post the previous World Cup which was hugely disappointing for the team.

The Reds had suffered two defeats in the initial phase of the tournament itself and had got eliminated.

Hong Myung-Bo, the then manager had to bear the consequences as he had been handed the axe straightaway and Stielike was slotted in.

When asked how he would like to describe his first season in charge, Stielike said, “I am immensely pleased with the overall efforts of the boys. The expectations that I had with them, they fulfilled it, hats off to them.”

“The results definitely matter, but, what also holds a lot of importance is that that how much of hard work you are putting in behind the scenes and I would say everyone was brilliant in that sense. The attitude of the whole squad in training and also, their overall conduct off the pitch was great and I would like to thank them for that.”

“After having such a wonderful run, it’s only natural that the supporters would expect us to shine even more the coming season and we hope we don’t disappoint them.”

On World Cup qualifying games, the former German international said, “The opposition in the coming games would probably be slightly stronger, but, we will go with the same philosophy that has brought so much of success to us. We have been aggressive and we will keep on playing that way regardless of which team we are taking on.”

Stielike also pointed out Lee Jae-Sung saying that he has been one of the most improved players over the recent past.
In the words of the boss, “Lee has always been agile; covering plenty of distance, but, what’s wonderful to see is that he is scoring as well now which he was not doing consistently before.”

Ji-Sung Park not slowed down

It’s been almost one year since Ji-Sung Park announced his retirement from playing competitive football but the player hailing from South Korea has not slowed down in any way as he has a number of projects which keep him busy even if that is outside of the playing grounds.

The South Korean man was named as the official ambassador of Manchester United on October of 2014 as he will be working alongside Sir.Bobby Charlton and Bryan Robson. He also played an important role in an event that involved having children from local schools in Seoul being given a lifetime VIP trip to Old Trafford.

These children were invited to participate in a training session and Ji-Sung Park had the task of choosing the one who displayed most talent and worked harder, the person selected was going to receive the lifetime VIP trip to the home turf of Manchester United.

Ji-Sung Park has established a number of soccer academies in Korea and the retired footballer decided to give the chance to 28 of those youngsters to spend 2 weeks in Manchester where they would learn English as well as play football with big football figures in England.

The retired footballer spent time performing in PSV, Queens Park Rangers and Kyoto Purple Sanga but it was with Manchester United where he truly managed to stand out as he helped the Premier League club in winning major trophies including: The Premier league title on 4 occasions and the Champions League silverware once.

Even though he is not performing in the playing grounds for any club, the impact he has made is not only felt in England but in South Korea as well as his playing career has turned the spotlight to South Korean football with more players his country are being produced.

Bayer Leverkusen decided to offload €10 million in order to sign the 22 year old forward from South Korea, Son Heung-min meanwhile Swansea City’s Ki Sung-yueng has been performing with the Premier League club since 2012.

More players are emerging from South Korea and performing in big European leagues and Ji-Sung Park has played a huge role in this recent trend as he paved the way on making this happen.

Uli Stielike wants Team to have New Options

South Korea’s coach Uli Stielike says that he wants the team to have new options going into the match against Uzbekistan in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

After having been appointed as the national team’s new coach just after a disappointing World Cup 2014,Uli Stielike managed to guide the team to the brink of the AFC Championship. Host nation Australia managed to defeat South Korea 2-1 in the final, but that aside, the team has been brilliant. This gives South Korea a lot of hope going into the World Cup 2018 qualifiers, which has just begun in the Asian region.

South Korea’s coach Uli Stielike says that he wants the team to have new options going into the match against Uzbekistan in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

South Korea are one of the strong teams from the Asian part of the world and they are expected to comfortably qualify for the World Cup. However, complacency can be a major issue for the team especially considering that South Korea have been relying upon their older players for a long time. This was widely evident at the World Cup 2014 were South Korea struggled without the experience and quality of former Manchester United midfielder Park Ji sung, who was not part of the tournament.Stielike has tried to introduce new qualities into the team by bringing as much as six players under the age of 27 for the recent matches.

“Players showed great performances as we ended up the Asian Cup in second place.I didn’t have to change the roster much. However, we need some of changes as well in order to develop ourselves to become first place, not second place. Kim Bo-kyung is almost a key player in Wigan; Ji Dong-won also played six matches out of seven matches as a starting member as he transferred to Augsburg from [Borussia] Dortmund.I called up two players in order to check their abilities by myself,” said the coach.

South Korea entered in Semi Finals of Asian Cup

South Korea has entered the semi-finals of the Asian Cup thanks to two goals which was scored by the 22 year old attacker Son Heung-Min after the team of UliStielike defeated Uzbekistan in the quarter-finals match which was played at the AAMI Park in Australia.

Uzbekistan almost managed to score an early goal after OdilAhmedov delivered a cross over to his teammate LutfullaTuraev who just wasn’t able to connect with the ball as he failed to reach the ball.

As the minutes ticked down it was South Korea, the team that started to put their pressure and influence in the pitch as their dominance began to grow. The goal-keeper of Uzbekistan IgnatiyNesterov had to be at the tip of his toes to deny Lee Keun-ho and Nam Tae-heefrom scoring in the 25th minute.

Both teams continued on creating more goal-scoring moments but neither could actually manage to seal it off and score. The game eventually had to be extended beyond the 90 minutes mark as the scoreboard remained goal-less and a winner had to be decided, which is why the match was prolonged.

When extra time was added, South Korea broke the deadlock at the 104th minute when Son Heung-Min found the back of the net through a header which went right through the hands of the goal-keeper Nesterov.

The match was over when Son Heung-Min netted his 2nd and last goal of the match a few minutes later which was more than enough for South Korea to claim the win and earn their ticket to the semi-finals of the Asian Cup.

This was a special game for Sen Heung-Min as he scored both goals which propelled his nation to the next stages of the tournament and this is even more significant when you take into consideration that the 22 year old player was unable to play in the previous 2 matches for South Korea due to an illness he recently recovered from.

Fernando Torres happily moved to San Siro

Fernando Torres has made it clear that nobody forced him to go to San Siro. He made that call himself.

There have been talks that Jose Mourinho, the manager of Torres’ parent club Chelsea, forcefully placed the Spanish striker on loan to Milan.

As per Torres, Mourinho has never treated him rudely. His relationship with the Portuguese manager is quite fine.
Talking to the reporters yesterday, “Jose’s behaviour towards me has been good. I don’t have any complains. As far as me moving to Milan is concerned, it was my own decision. I wasn’t forced.”

Fernando Torres has made it clear that nobody forced him to go to San Siro. He made that call himself.

There have been talks that Jose Mourinho, the manager of Torres’ parent club Chelsea, forcefully placed the Spanish striker on loan to Milan.

“I get along with Jose quite well. Even now that I am in Italy, I call him occasionally and have a chat. There are no hard feelings at all.”

When asked why he did not choose to rejoin his boyhood club Atletico Madrid, the 30-year old said, “They were not really interested. There were a lot of speculations on their part which I did not particularly appreciate. I love that team though. I watch their games at the end of every week, but, you know you have got to be realistic and see where you are wanted.”

When asked if he thinks if he is ever going to feature for La Roja again, Torres said, “Yes, of course. I know some people out there believe that it’s the end of the road for me at the international level, but, I don’t think so. As long as I have not retired, I must believe that I can get the opportunity.”

Whether Torres plays any more games for Spain or not, he is already a legend for his country having been capped more than 100 times since his debut in 2003. He has scored 38 goals for La Roja thus far.

Stielike thinks they can beat Costa Rica

South Korea might have been 48 positions below Costa Rica in the FIFA World rankings, but, Uli Stielike, the man who has recently taken charge of the team, believes that the Asian giants have every chance of emerging victorious in the friendly game against the Central Americans.
That game is going to be played next week in the capital city of Seoul.
Stielike’s tenure as the South Korea boss has already started on a winning note. In his first game in charge a couple of nights back against Paraguay, his team won by a margin of 2 goals.
Stielike surprised people with the starting XI that he picked for that game. He did not use the big names either at the back end or upfront and rather showed faith in unknown faces and those unknown faces actually ended up delivering.
Stielike however denied that the same starting XI would turn up in Tuesdays’ game as well. According to him, he likes to keep the team information secret.
In the press conference earlier today, when asked about the starting XI, the 59-year old German said, “I don’t reveal the team information in the press. I know which players I have to go with. I hope whoever gets the opportunity at whichever position does well for the team and we succeed in having our second consecutive win.”
When asked what he thinks of his team’s performance in that Paraguay game, Stielike said, “I thought in that game, we started lacking a bit of gas in the last 15-20 minutes. We gave them the possession easily. I would not like to see that happening this game.”
Stielike has managed international sides like Switzerland and Ivory Coast before, but, this is the first time that he is managing an Asian international side.

Yong-Soo Reveals Shortlist

Hong Myung Bo was the latest manager to take charge of the South Korean national football team but his stay as the head coach of the squad did not last very long as he was appointed as the coach on June 24 of 2014 as the board of directors of the team wanted him to prepare the squad for the 2014 World Cup but after not managing to win a single match and finishing at the bottom of Group H, Myung Bo resigned from his position on July 10 of the same year. His time as the manager of the national side did not last even for 1 month.

Ever since then Hong Myung Bo departed and stepped down as the manager the South Korean national football team has been without a head coach but according to the newly appoint head of the technical committee, Lee Yong-Soo has revealed that a shortlist has already been made with 3 potential suitors.

Lee Yong-Soo spoke during a press conference and unveiled details about the appointment of the next coach of the national team: “We’ve shortlisted three coaches based on specific criteria, and all three are from overseas. One South Korean coach met our criteria, but our committee decided to keep him off the list this time. The Korean Football Association (KFA) will begin serious negotiations with the three candidates next week,” Lee added. “We will not identify those candidates at this time.”

All fingers are pointing towards the next coach of the South Korean national football team towards being a foreign coach as Lee Yong-Soo said. The manager that is going to be elected is expected to be in charge of the national team and guide them through the Asian qualifications for the 2018 World Cup which will be held in Russia.

South Korea has a number of friendly matches scheduled to play against: Venezuela, Uruguay and Paraguay which will be played throughout September and October.