Park Ji-sung, Lee Young-pyo, and Park Moon-sung Criticize After Shocking Defeat to South Africa: "Hong Myung-bo, How Will You Take Responsibility?"

Hong Myung-bo's Squad Suffers Shocking 0-1 Defeat to South Africa

Fails to Secure Round of 32 Spot on Their Own

Hong Myung-bo: "The Disappointing Result Is the Coach's Responsibility"

The South Korean national football team, led by coach Hong Myung-bo, suffered a shocking defeat against South Africa, leading to criticism of Hong’s tactics from various corners of the football community.

Park Moonsung: "How did you let the team become like this"

South Korean national football team coach Hong Myung-bo shows a somber expression during the Group A third match against South Africa in the 2026 North and Central America World Cup held at Monterrey Stadium in Mexico on the 24th (local time). Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Football commentator Park Moonsung posted a broadcast screen shot on his Instagram on the 25th, showing coach Hong sitting on the bench and watching the match. At that time, South Korea was trailing South Africa 0-1.

Along with the photo, Park wrote, "How did you let the team become like this?" He continued, "Asymmetry of responsibility: when those with great authority and benefit bear little responsibility for poor results." He then questioned, "So how exactly do you intend to take responsibility?"

Previously, South Korea lost 0-1 to South Africa in the third Group A match of the 2026 North and Central America World Cup group stage, held at Monterrey Stadium in Guadalupe, Mexico. South Africa was considered the weakest team in Group A, which includes Mexico and the Czech Republic, with a FIFA real-time ranking of 61st—the lowest in the group prior to the match.

In the post-match press conference, coach Hong stated, "On such a big stage, the result is entirely the responsibility of the coach," and added, "In the end, everything was a result of my own judgment and decisions."

Park Jisung also voices criticism: "Was this really a match to win?"

On the 24th (local time), during the third match of Group A of the 2026 North and Central America World Cup held at Monterrey Stadium in Mexico, South Korean coach Hong Myung-bo is giving tactical instructions during the halftime hydration break. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Park Jisung, a commentator for JTBC, also strongly criticized the team’s match management. Immediately after the match, he commented in the broadcast, "We need to reconsider whether this was really a match played to win," adding, "It was not clear what the attacking plan was supposed to be."

He added, "I feel that all three group stage matches had the exact same tactics. The idea was to focus on defense and then attack, but it was never clear how we would attack up to the penalty area, nor what the plan was once we got there. This issue was consistent across all three matches, and that’s the problem," he pointed out.

Lee Youngpyo, a commentator for KBS, also criticized Hong’s tactics. He said, "I understand the strategic intention behind placing Son Heungmin on the bench for the second half and setting up the starting lineup that way, but that intention never materialized at any point from the first half to the end."

He continued, "While Son Heungmin, Jens, and Kim Jingyu did bring some energy when they came on in the second half, the momentum had already shifted to the opponent and it ultimately had little effect. On top of that, when Kim Minjae, the key defender, had to leave due to a calf injury, the defensive organization collapsed significantly, compounding the team’s problems," he added.

Meanwhile, with this defeat, South Korea finished third in the group stage with 1 win and 2 losses (4 points). Whether the team advances to the round of 32 will depend on the results of other group matches, and only the top 8 out of the 12 third-placed teams will be able to progress to the round of 32.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.