The 'legend of Japanese football' Masami Ihara (58) announced his addition to the K League 2 Suwon Samsung coaching staff. His move to Korea is also drawing significant interest in Japan.
Japan's Sports Nippon Annex reported on the 30th (Korea time), "Ihara announced that he will take up the role of coach for the Suwon team in the Korean second division starting in July. He stated that he wants to 'put in as much effort as possible' for his first overseas move."
Ihara, a former central defender who was also known as 'the Hong Myung-bo of Japan' during his playing days, is a coach with a wealth of experience. He played in 122 A matches for the Japanese national team (the fourth most appearances in history) and helped secure the 1992 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup victory. At the 1994 Hiroshima Asian Games, he made a deep impression on domestic football fans by scoring an equalizer against Korea in the quarterfinals.
During his prime, Ihara was selected for the J1 League Best Eleven five years in a row. After retiring, he worked as a commentator and studied coaching, taking his first step as head coach of the Japan Under-23 (U-23) national team in 2006. Since then, he has worked for over a decade as a coach and head coach for Kashiwa Reysol and Avispa Fukuoka.
Until last year, Ihara had been leading Kashiwa as head coach. However, after narrowly avoiding relegation by finishing 17th in the J1 League, he stepped down and declared a period of rest.
Amid this, the surprising news came that Ihara would take up the role of coach for Suwon. Born in 1967, he is 12 years older than current Suwon coach Byun Seong-hwan. Therefore, the news that Ihara, a legend of Japanese football, will take on the role of defensive coach for Suwon in the second division in Korea inevitably surprised many.
Ihara announced his joining of Suwon as a coach on his official website, saying, "I will join the K League Suwon Samsung Bluewings as a coach starting this July. This is my first overseas challenge and a new endeavor for me. However, I am grateful for the opportunity and want to exert my utmost efforts to help the team achieve its goals."
Now, Ihara is expected to sit on the bench starting with the away match against Chungnam Asan on the 5th. If he can resolve Suwon's defensive issues, promotion to K League 1 is not merely a distant dream.
As of Round 18, Suwon currently lies in 2nd place in K League 2. While the gap in points from first place Incheon has widened to 10, they are still in a position to aim for promotion playoffs.
However, while they showcase the strongest offensive power in the league with 37 goals, their defense ranks 7th in least goals conceded with 22. Given that there are many instances of conceding due to individual mistakes in the backline, stabilizing the defense is essential.
Sports Nippon Annex noted that "Suwon is an old powerhouse where former Japanese national team striker Manabu Saito once played. With support from Ihara, who was known as 'the wall of Asia,' they aim for promotion to the first division after three years. Ihara served as head coach from 2009 to 2014 at Kashiwa, experiencing two interim coaching stints, and after serving as Fukuoka's coach, he returned to Kashiwa as a coach in 2018, taking over as head coach in May 2023 after the previous coach's resignation."
[Photo] ⓒGettyimages (No unauthorized reproduction or redistribution), provided by Korea Professional Football League (KPFL).
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