K League-winning coach Kim Sang-sik to lead Vietnam men's nat'l team

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, May 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korean tactician Kim Sang-sik was named the new head coach of the Vietnamese men's senior and under-23 national football teams on Friday.

The Vietnamese Football Federation (VFF) announced Kim's contract will run through March 31, 2026. He will be formally introduced in a ceremony on Monday.

Kim, 47, helped Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors to the K League 1 title in 2021, after serving as the club's top assistant coach for the previous seven seasons.

On Kim's watch, Jeonbuk also won the Korean FA Cup in 2022 and reached the semifinals of the Asian Football Confederation Champions League the same year. Kim stepped down in May last year, with Jeonbuk stuck in 10th place among 12 clubs after winning only three of their first 10 matches.

Kim will make his Vietnam debut in June, with matches against the Philippines and Iraq in the second round of the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

With Vietnam, Kim is succeeding Philippe Troussier. Before the Frenchman, South Korea's Park Hang-seo had been in charge of Vietnam for a little over five years.

Vietnam enjoyed unprecedented success under Park, winning their first ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Championship in 10 years in 2018 and reaching the quarterfinals of the 2019 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup to match their best performance at the top continental event. Vietnam also reached the final Asian qualification round for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Park also guided the U-23 national team to gold medals at the 2019 and 2021 Southeast Asian Games after taking them to second place at the AFC U-23 Asian Cup and fourth place at the Asian Games, both in 2018.

Vietnam broke into the top 100 on Park's watch and they're currently 115th.

jeeho@yna.co.kr
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