4 coaches lose their jobs after Asian Cup 2023

The Korea Football Association (KFA) announced on February 16 that coach Jurgen Klinsmann had been fired after less than a year of working together, despite the contract originally being until July 2026. The KFA agreed to pay compensation of about 10 billion won, equivalent to 7.5 million USD, to the entire coaching staff after fierce criticism from many sides for the German coach.

Klinsmann failed to complete his mission of helping South Korea win the 2023 Asian Cup, losing 0-2 to Jordan in the semi-finals. He was criticized for both his tactics and dressing room management, culminating in a brawl between two big stars Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in right before the semi-finals. In addition, Klinsmann also lost points for his attitude when he often worked from abroad instead of being present in South Korea.

Another coach who lost his job due to failure to complete his duties was Branko Ivankovic, after Oman was eliminated in the group stage. The Croatian coach, born in 1954, led Oman since 2020 and made his mark in the third qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup, but also showed his limits. The Oman Football Federation has a roadmap to say goodbye when announcing his successor, Jaroslav Silhavy, a former coach of the Czech Republic, on February 1.

In contrast to Klinsmann and Ivankovic, Tajikistan's Petar Segrt and Juan Antonio Pizzi parted ways despite helping their teams achieve good results at the 2023 Asian Cup. Pizzi helped Bahrain top Group E with South Korea and Jordan before losing 1-3 to Japan in the round of 16. However, he and the Bahrain Football Association agreed to part ways peacefully, after working together in June 2023. Previously, the Spaniard had helped Chile win the 2016 Copa America.

Meanwhile, Petar Segrt was unknown before the 2023 Asian Cup but then received a lot of attention for his appearance similar to the famous physicist Albert Einstein, along with his strong leadership ability. The Croatian coach born in 1966 made a strong impression when he helped Tajikistan reach the quarter-finals for the first time in his first Asian Cup. The team finished second in Group A with hosts Qatar, Lebanon and China, then defeated the UAE in a penalty shootout in the round of 16 before losing 0-1 to Jordan in the quarter-finals. The Tajikistan Football Federation offered to extend his contract but Segrt refused.

Several coaches also face questions about their futures at the Asian Cup, including Roberto Mancini (Saudi Arabia), Hajime Moriyasu (Japan), Philippe Troussier (Vietnam) and Aleksandar Jankovic (China).

Euro 2020 champion Mancini left a negative image when he went into the tunnel early when Saudi Arabia lost to South Korea in the round of 16 penalty shootout, while Moriyasu could not help Japan win the championship when they lost to Iran in the quarterfinals. However, the Presidents of the Saudi Arabian and Japanese Football Federations have both confirmed that they continue to put their trust in the two coaches towards the 2026 World Cup.

When he learned that coach Klinsmann was fired, Moriyasu said that the coaching profession is a difficult world. He said: "I think it is a case of being responsible for the results. In this profession, everything is related to results. I could have been fired like that too."

Coach Troussier also received patience from the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF). The French coach has two important matches against Indonesia in the second qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup at the end of March. If he loses to his opponent and misses the chance to enter the third qualifying round, he will not complete the goal as stated in the contract and will likely be fired.

China was eliminated in the group stage but the Chinese Football Association has not yet fired coach Aleksandar Jankovic. Many opinions on the news aggregator Sina and Sohu called for the Serbian coach to be fired after his poor performance. The alternative solution could be coaches who have just lost their jobs such as Branko Ivankovic or Juan Antonio Pizzi.