Bau Duc brings Guus Hiddink's former assistant back to rescue HAGL

Mr. Chung Hae-seong will hold the role of Technical Director of Hoang Anh Gia Lai Club, according to a 2-year cooperation agreement.

HAGL Club representative (right), the team sponsor and Coach Chung Hae-seong at the signing ceremony of the memorandum of understanding on the afternoon of October 12 in Korea. Photo: Anh Nguyen.

Authorized by the club's chairman Doan Nguyen Duc, head of the HAGL football team Nguyen Tan Anh and the sponsor's representative signed a memorandum of understanding with coach Chung Hae-seong in Korea at noon on October 12. Mr. Chung will return to the mountain town with the title of Technical Director. Coach Nguyen Quoc Tuan will remain in his position as head coach of the club.

Chung is an experienced coach. At the national team level, he was an assistant coach of the Korean Olympic team at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. He then worked as an assistant coach of Guus Hiddink at the 2002 World Cup, where the co-host team finished fourth. Hiddink's assistant team at that time also included coach Park Hang-seo, who was recently appointed as the new head coach of the Vietnamese national team.

Mr. Chung then became the number one assistant of the Korean team participating in the 2010 World Cup (entering the round of 16).

From left to right are Mr. Park Hang-seo, Guus Hiddink and Chung Hae-seong.

In early 2017, Chung was appointed by the Korea Football Association as the number one assistant coach of the Korean national team under the guidance of German head coach Ulrich Stielike. In July, when Stielike resigned, Chung decided to step down to return to coach the Choongang High School team, where he spent his youth.

At the club level, Mr. Chung also achieved many achievements. During the period 2003-2007, he led Jeju Club to win the 2004 FA Cup runner-up, the 2007 FA Cup semi-final and finished fourth in the 2005 national championship. From 2010 to 2012, he coached Jeonnam Dragons FC Club.

HAGL is experiencing a series of three consecutive losses in V-League 2017. The mountain town team is only ranked 12th, and if they continue to lose, they will be pushed to the second to last. That is one of the reasons why Mr. Duc decided to hire a Korean coach to "rescue" his team.

Coach Chung Hae Seong's official debut ceremony is scheduled to take place on October 18 in Ho Chi Minh City.

According to VNE