Korean managers see success at Mitsubishi Electric Cup

Published: 10 Dec. 2024, 15:33

  Korean managers Shin Tae-yong and Kim Sang-sik kicked off the Mitsubishi Electric Cup on the right foot on Monday, with Shin’s Indonesia beating Myanmar 1-0 and Kim’s Vietnam thrashing Laos 4-1.    

  The Mitsubishi Electric Cup is South East Asia’s top tournament and has taken place biennially since 1996.     Vietnam are chasing their third cup this year after winning it in 2008 and 2018, while Indonesia are looking for their first title on the back of six runner-up finishes, the most of any country.   Winning a title at this year’s tournament will be the first for either Korean manager.   Shin, who has coached Indonesia at the U-20, U-23 and senior levels since 2020, has produced some notable results such as finishing as runners-up at the Asean Football Federation (AFF) U-23 Championship in 2023 and semifinalists at the AFC U-23 Championship in 2024, but has fallen short of a title.     A runner-up finish at the AFF Championship in 2020 is the best result he has achieved with the senior team.     Kim, meanwhile, took the helm of the Vietnamese senior and U-23 teams in May and has yet to produce significant results with the squads.  

  The former Jeonbuk Hyundai Motor boss is the second Korean manger to lead Vietnam after Park Hang-seo, who saw huge success from 2017 to 2023, during which he won the AFF Suzuki Cup with the national team and two South Asian Games with the U-23 team, in addition to elevating Vietnamese football to a significantly higher level, bringing up the country’s FIFA ranking from around No. 130 to the low 90s.     The Mitsubishi Electric Cup has two groups of five, with the top two teams from each group reaching the semifinals.     Indonesia will play their next group stage match against Laos on Thursday, before they face Vietnam on Sunday.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [[email protected]]