The reason why coach Shin Tae Yong was fired for the second time in a year

(Dan Tri) - According to Sports Seoul, the main reason why Ulsan HD Club decided to fire coach Shin Tae Yong after only 65 days was due to unresolved conflicts between the players and the coaching staff.

The reigning K-League 1 champions, Ulsan HD, are going through a turbulent period when the board of directors was forced to make the decision to fire coach Shin Tae Yong after only 65 days in charge, causing the Korean strategist to lose his job twice in one year. In January, the Indonesian Football Association decided to fire coach Shin Tae Yong as head coach of the Indonesian men's football team.

The decision to fire coach Shin Tae Yong on October 9 was made in the context that Ulsan HD was facing the risk of having to play in the relegation play-off and the reason given by the team for parting with him was due to the team's poor performance, however that was just "the tip of the iceberg".

Coach Shin Tae Yong lost his job for the second time in a year (Photo: KFA).

Conflict between coaching staff and players

Immediately after the 1-1 draw with Shanghai Shenhua in the AFC Champions League Elite on October 1, Ulsan HD's key players requested a meeting with CEO Kim Kwang Guk to express their opposition to the coaching staff. Previously, coach Shin Tae Yong's statement about "reforming the squad" at the press conference had caused internal shock, exacerbating the conflicts that already existed between the players and the coaching staff. The away match in Shanghai became the "line of life and death" for the team's future.

The sacking of coach Kim Pan Gon in July due to poor results forced Ulsan HD to look for a temporary solution. Initially, youth training director Noh Sang Rae was considered for the interim position. However, the board unexpectedly appointed Shin Tae Yong as the permanent coach. This decision was seen as a gamble, and continuing to "change the coach" again during the season would expose the club's management weaknesses.

However, Ulsan HD had no choice. The team was ranked 10th in K-League 1, a position that had to compete in the relegation play-off. With a certain position in the Final B group (the relegation group), Ulsan had to fight for survival in the last 6 matches of the season. The coaching staff could not come up with a feasible tactical plan, while the team was divided internally due to arguments about eliminating some players, causing the spirit of unity, a vital factor for relegation, to be broken. In that situation, Ulsan was forced to make a drastic decision, which was to fire the coach for the second time in the season and return to the interim Noh Sang Rae plan.

Coach Shin Tae Yong could not help Ulsan gain the necessary stability (Photo: KFA).

65 tragic days of coach Shin Tae Yong

In just 65 days, tragedy struck. On October 9, Ulsan officially announced that they were parting ways with coach Shin Tae Yong, which was essentially a dismissal. Coach Shin Tae Yong was planning to return to coaching after the FIFA Days break, but was notified that his contract was terminated. He had sensed this beforehand. The players returned to the training ground, but normal training sessions could not take place.

According to people familiar with Ulsan’s internal affairs, the signs of crisis were clear from the start. From the moment coach Shin Tae Yong took over, there were disagreements over coaching methods and communication with players. One player even filed an official complaint with the club. The club’s administrative department also sent an official letter of recommendation to coach Shin. In the process, tensions arose between the coaching staff and the administrative department.

If the results were good, things might have calmed down, but that didn’t happen. The 1-0 win over Jeju SK on August 9, Shin Tae Yong’s debut match, was his last K-League 1 victory. Since then, Ulsan HD have gone seven consecutive games without a win (three draws, four losses).

Coach Shin Tae Yong's mission when taking over was to "put out the fire in the house", to unite the team in chaos and create hope for the next season, which was considered a success. However, he was considered to be overconfident. This was the first time in 13 years (since the time he led Seongnam Ilhwa - now Seongnam FC) that he returned to coach in K-League 1. During that time, K-League 1 changed dramatically: player style, management thinking, and working culture. Moreover, this was the first time in his career that Coach Shin Tae Yong took on the role of "mid-season fire-fighting coach".

Many believe that coach Shin Tae Yong should have been more cautious and flexible, considering his long absence and the changes in the K-League, but he stubbornly stuck to his own methods, leading to unresolved conflicts and ultimately a breakup.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/nguyen-nhan-khien-hlv-shin-tae-yong-bi-sa-thai-lan-thu-hai-trong-mot-nam-20251010145857982.htm