Jurgen Klinsmann: South Korea Is Not Afraid Of Anyone

Jurgen Klinsmann, South Korean coach (doc. AFC).

JAKARTA - The battle between Saudi Arabia vs South Korea became the meeting of two of the world's top coaches. Roberto Mancini is behind the wheel of Saudi Arabia and Jurgen Klinsmann at the South Korean tactician post.

This match became the fiercest party than the others in the round of 16 of the 2023 Asian Cup.

This is the second clash between Klinsmann and Mancini since they took charge of the two Asian giants.

Previously, South Korea and Saudi Arabia had held a friendly party at St. James Park, Newcastle, England. Taegeuk Warriors narrowly won 1-0.

Klinsmann realized Saudi Arabia was much different from when they met for the first time. The German coach emphasized that his troops need to work harder if they want to win.

"You can see now his (Mancini) handwriting on the team after 10 games. They are a very good team, but we are ready," Klinsmann said of Mancini, who was appointed in August 2023.

"We have strength. We have the spirit we need to believe that we can continue to advance in the 2023 Asian Cup." "We have to believe that we can beat Saudi Arabia, but it will require hard work, it will be very difficult, and maybe it will continue on penalties."

"Whatever can happen in football, you can't predict what will happen next," Klinsmann said on the AFC website.

South Korea on paper is not a favorite given their appearance throughout Group E of the 2023 Asian Cup.

Instead of being superior, Taegeuk Warriors actually struggled. They only packed one win and two draws.

The only victory was won against Bahrain (3-1). The remaining two draws were obtained when they met Jordan (2-2) and even Malaysia (3-3).

They qualified for the round of 16 only as runners-up in Group E.

Klinsmann sees his team having some shortcomings. However, he emphasized that it was getting better when he fought Saudi Arabia.

"What we know is that we have been training hard for the last few weeks. We have goals in our minds. We are focused."

"We know we made some mistakes, but we have corrected them. Hopefully you will see a very interesting match," he said.

In fact, Klinsmann soared trust in his students to bend any opponent in this knockout round.

"To be honest I am not afraid of anyone. There is no fear, but high respect. We have great respect for every opponent we face. Previously, Jordan, Bahrain, Malaysia, we respect them all, this is important." "Roberto did his job tremendously. It was a step-by-step process that he had to go through with his team. This is a new adventure for him, this is a new adventure for me to be in South Korea and train this fantastic team," said Klinsmann.

The Saudi vs South Korean Arabian match will be held at the Education Stadium, Al Rayyan, on Tuesday, January 30, 2024, at 22.00 WIB.