Park Hang-seo revealed secrets about Korea at the 2002 World Cup

It was the first major tournament in Mr. Park's career, it also made his name widely known throughout Korea.

On the occasion of reviewing the victory anniversary of Korea against Spain on June 22 - 18 years ago, AFC had an interview with Vietnam coach Park Hang Seo. Mr. Park recalled:

“It’s not easy to pick out one special memory from the 2002 FIFA World Cup, because that tournament itself was a very special experience in my coaching career,” Park says. “It wasn’t just an important moment, but a happy moment."

“When I think about that World Cup, I still get emotional and happy about the experience. Overall, it has a special meaning to me and the country.”

Park was one of two assistant coaches to head coach Guus Hiddink, and expectations were high that the Dutchman would deliver the results the nation craved with Korea Republic never having advanced to the knock-out stage in their previous five appearances in the FIFA World Cup Finals.

Korea reached the semi-finals in World Cup 2002. On that glorious journey, they knocked down a number of giants of world football. Perhaps when Coach Hiddink came to power, no one believed this man could do it. Mr. Park revealed a detail of Mr. Hiddink's promise to the Koreans before the World Cup began.

“When Guus was first appointed as the head coach, he explained in the press conference that the Korea Republic national team will shock the world but nobody quite understood what he meant at that time.

Coach Park Hang Seo stands beside Coach Hiddink in the Korean squad at the 2002 World Cup

“Because going into the 2002 World Cup, the goal was to qualify for the knockout stage, as we’ve never previously progressed past the group stage. The coaching staff and the players never fully understood what he meant.”

With a squad boasting the likes of Park Ji-sung, Ahn Jun-hwang, Choi Yong-soo and Hong Myung-bo, Korea Republic took the group stage by storm as Hiddink’s men defeated Poland 2-0 in their opener to register a first-ever win at the Finals.

An Ahn strike salvaged a 1-1 draw with the United States, before Park Ji-sung scored as Korea Republic beat Portugal 1-0 to not only seal top spot in Group D but also eliminate the Europeans.

“In the build-up to the match, the coaching staff focused on the mental aspect instead of giving the players technical direction. They worked with each player to boost their confidence.”

The thought work has helped South Korea overcome all difficulties, including physical factors to achieve unprecedented achievement with an Asian team.

“There were many different things that I learnt from Guus. To name a few, his understanding of the culture that he was working in. He respected Korea Republic, the country and the culture.

“I saw him working tirelessly trying to understand the football culture so that he could communicate and implement his tactical knowledge to the players and coaches."

“Secondly, his technical knowledge. I tried to learn and understand his approach to each game, so that I could one day use his technical abilities.”

Park, who took charge of Vietnam in late 2017, has used his experience to great effect.

“Overall, working with Guus taught me how to approach my coaching career in Vietnam, because when I first came to Vietnam, I too was a foreigner and needed to understand the country, culture and players’ response. And because I had experienced it with Guus, it has helped me with the Vietnamese national team.”