Nat’l football coach Hong voices frustration over lingering controversy over appointment

South Korea men's national football head coach Hong Myung-bo said Monday he is "frustrated" with the lingering controversy surrounding his appointment, while calling on the sport's national governing body to be more transparent about the process that led to the current situation. Hong made the remarks during a press conference announcing his 26-man squad for the next set of World Cup qualifying matches in October -- first against Jordan and then Iraq. He was asked about his recent appearance during a questioning session for the parliamentary committee on sports. Hong, along with Korea Football Association (KFA) President Chung Mong-gyu, was grilled last Tuesday about how the KFA brought Hong aboard in July without putting him through the same, rigorous vetting process that foreign-born candidates had been subjected to in weeks prior. While Chung often struggled to articulate his answers, Hong cut a more defiant figure, saying he had not been treated any differently than other candidates and that he would no t step down from his post. The session, which went on for nearly 12 hours, did little to assuage fans who have been calling for Hong's head since the beginning. Asked on Monday what he felt about the continued lack of support from fans, Hong said, "I am frustrated myself. "I wanted to say a lot of things at the National Assembly, but ultimately, I didn't get to do it," said Hong, who was booed before, during and after the Sept. 5 World Cup qualifier against Palestine in Seoul. "Personally, I felt I've been unfairly criticized. I heard (from the KFA) that they had gone through a proper process, and I had received the highest mark among candidates. So that's why I accepted the job. But I heard different things at the National Assembly this time." The KFA's National Teams Committee was put in charge of overseeing the coaching search, and it held several meetings to review the candidacies of different tacticians. Hong said the KFA should publicly disclose the minutes from those meetings to put an end to the c ontroversy. "We can't keep talking about this situation forever, and I think being more transparent about the whole thing is one of the ways to go about it," Hong said. "I don't know what the KFA will do, but personally, I'd like to know more." The saga is far from over, despite Hong's wish. The ministry of culture, sports and tourism is scheduled to announce interim findings of its probe into the KFA on Wednesday. "I won't comment on what the ministry is doing. It won't take long for me to think about the next steps after those findings are announced," Hong said. "To me, how we play the two upcoming matches is more important." Source: Yonhap News Agency