Huh Jung-moo quits Incheon in bitter split

Incheon United coach Huh Jung-moo resigned from his post yesterday, ending his 20-month stint with the K-League football club.

Huh took the coaching job at Incheon after leading Korea to the round of 16 at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. It was the first time that the national football team reached the World Cup knockout stage on foreign soil.

However, it turned out that the relationship between Huh and club management wasn’t as good as the team’s performance, and also didn’t meet fans’ expectation.

It was reported that the coach was disappointed with the club’s reckless management that didn’t pay the team in time and was feeling stressed from zealous fans over the club’s performance.

Huh finished his last match with a 1-1 draw against Gwangju FC yesterday, marking one win, two draws and four losses this season. Huh will leave the club with 10 wins, 24 draws and 19 losses.

“I’m sorry for my players that I can’t stay with them until the end,” Huh said. “I want to be close to fans with a lot of communication, but it became difficult as more misunderstandings happened.”

Huh said his next step will be heading to Europe to study more football. The former PSV Eindhoven player said he will watch Euro 2012, co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine, in June.

Sources said that Huh, who once worked as a football commentator in 2010, may also resume his career as a football analyst for broadcasting companies.

By Joo Kyung-don