Former United States men’s national team manager Jürgen Klinsmann coached his first game for South Korea on Friday as the Taeguk Warriors drew Colombia 2-2.
Klinsmann was named the new manager of South Korea on Feb. 27. Friday, he faced his first test which was a friendly match against Colombia in front of the home crowd in Ulsan, South Korea.
This is the German manager’s first real head coaching gig since he was let go by the USMNT back in 2016. He had an incredibly brief ten-week managerial stint with Hertha Berlin in 2019 before he stepped down.
After South Korea’s first 45 minutes it looked like Klinsmann couldn’t have gotten off to a better start. Star forward Son Heung-min had a brace at halftime including a fantastic free kick to give the hosts a 2-0 lead.
[GOAL] 대한민국 1-0 콜롬비아
전반 10분! 캡틴 손흥민 선수가 클린스만 감독에게 첫 골을 선물합니다!
상대의 실수로 빈 골문에 깔끔한 슛을 꽂아넣습니다!#대한민국 #축구국가대표팀 #3월 #친선경기 #다시카타르 #TEAM클린스만 pic.twitter.com/JMwU4Hf0rV— theKFA (@theKFA) March 24, 2023
[GOAL] 대한민국 2-0 콜롬비아
전반 45+2분! 손흥민 선수 콜롬비아한테 자꾸 이러시면 감사합니다❤
아크 정면 프리킥 상황, 아름다운 곡선으로 골을 만들어냅니다!#대한민국 #축구국가대표팀 #3월 #친선경기 #다시카타르 #TEAM클린스만 pic.twitter.com/lya0FH9NHU— theKFA (@theKFA) March 24, 2023
Klinsmann must not have given a very inspiring halftime speech as South Korea’s lead against Colombia lasted all of four minutes.
James Rodriguez scored 59 seconds into the second half to get Colombia right back into the game.
James Rodríguez (46')#COL 1-2 #KOR
— Sergio A. Calderón C. (@SergioCalC) March 24, 2023
Colombia’s second goal was almost indentical to the first as Jorge Carrascal levelled the game at 2-2 in the 49th minute.
Jorge Carrascal (50')#COL 2-2 #KOR
— Sergio A. Calderón C. (@SergioCalC) March 24, 2023
Klinsmann’s men pushed for a winner and nearly had it with two minutes left in the game, however Oh Hyeon-gyu’s late effort was cleared by the Colombia defense.
Up next for the ex-U.S. boss and South Korea is a home friendly vs. Uruguay on Tuesday. Klinsmann will be hoping to get his first win under his belt then.
