Robert Moreno named South Korea manager as he seeks fresh start in international football

The Korea Football Association has appointed 48-year-old Spaniard Robert Moreno as the new manager of the South Korea national team, giving the former Spain coach another opportunity to make his mark at international level.

Moreno is the first Spanish coach to take charge of South Korea. His appointment follows the departure of Hong Myung-bo, who left his position after the team’s disappointing campaign at the 2016 World Cup ended in the group stage.

The Korea Football Association plans to use a series of autumn friendlies to allow Moreno to assess his squad and introduce his methods. His first competitive stage in the role will begin in September, when South Korea are scheduled to face Ecuador and Uruguay.

South Korea will then play Venezuela and Uzbekistan in further friendly matches in October. More fixtures could be arranged for November, with the run of games intended to provide the association with an initial assessment of Moreno’s performance and the team’s progress under his management.

If the results and performances meet expectations, the Korea Football Association is considering extending Moreno’s contract. That could give him the chance to lead South Korea at the 2027 Asian Cup, which is due to take place in Saudi Arabia at the beginning of that year.

The move to Asian football represents a new international challenge for Moreno, who previously managed Spain on a temporary basis in 2019. He stepped into the role after Luis Enrique took time away from the national team for personal reasons.

Moreno’s appointment also revives memories of a controversial episode from that period. In 2019, he had been Luis Enrique’s assistant with Spain before being promoted to head coach when his former manager stood aside.

Luis Enrique left the national team in June that year after his daughter Xana fell ill. She later died in August at the age of nine. Moreno remained in charge and guided Spain to qualification for Euro 2020.

At first, Moreno said he would step aside if Luis Enrique decided to return to the job. However, their relationship changed after a meeting between the two men in September 2019.

According to Luis Enrique’s account, Moreno told him that he wanted to manage Spain at the European Championship before returning to his previous position as assistant after the tournament.

Luis Enrique described that position as “disloyalty” and said he no longer wanted Moreno to remain part of his coaching staff. He considered Moreno’s ambition at that stage to have gone beyond what was acceptable from someone who had been both his assistant and a close friend for several years.

Moreno subsequently left the Spain set-up and went on to coach Monaco, Granada and Russian club Sochi. He now has the opportunity to lead another national team, with his next chapter beginning in South Korea.