Coach Park Hang Seo is humble, praises Kim Sang Sik

Coach Park Hang Seo acknowledges that he is slowly "waning," whereas his junior Kim Sang Sik is close to achieving success in Vietnam.

In a recent interview with Sports Seoul from South Korea, Coach Kim Sang Sik praised the influence of his senior compatriot Park Hang Seo, crediting him for helping him quickly adapt to working and living in Vietnam. Kim even affectionately called Park “teacher.”

Specifically, the head coach of Vietnam’s national team shared: "I truly felt very fortunate to have Coach Park. He always told me very specific details about the players, even about the atmosphere in away stadiums and training conditions. These were things I would have had to experience myself to understand, but thanks to Coach Park, I knew them beforehand. This helped me avoid many mistakes and integrate quickly into Vietnamese football."

In response to the praise from his junior, Coach Park Hang Seo showed humility and affirmed that he is stepping back to let the younger star shine.

Coach Park said: ""Now I am just a fading star, while Kim Sang Sik is the rising star who will surely shine even brighter in the future.""

Park Hang Seo can be considered one of the greatest coaches Vietnamese football has ever had. Since officially taking over as head coach of Vietnam’s national team at the end of 2017, the Korean coach quickly made a strong impression by leading U23 Vietnam to a historic spot in the 2018 AFC U23 Championship final, narrowly losing to Uzbekistan in the final minutes.

Following that feat, many more achievements came under Park’s leadership. The "Golden Dragons" won the 2018 AFF Cup, then made a strong impact by reaching the quarterfinals of the 2019 Asian Cup, a rare milestone in the nation’s football history.

Not only successful at the senior national team level, Park also proved his talent in coaching youth teams. At the 2019 SEA Games, he led U22 Vietnam to their first gold medal after many years, then successfully defended the title at SEA Games 31 held at home in 2022.

After the glorious period under Park Hang Seo, Vietnamese football entered a turbulent phase under Philippe Troussier. Under the French strategist, the team performed inconsistently and was eliminated early in the second round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, leading to his departure as head coach.

In May 2024, the Vietnam Football Federation entrusted Kim Sang Sik, who became the second Korean coach in history to lead both the senior and U23 national teams. This choice quickly bore fruit as under the 49-year-old coach, Vietnam won a double title at the 2024 AFF Cup and the 2025 U23 Southeast Asian Championship.

Although having initial success in over a year in charge, Kim Sang Sik admits he faces significant pressure, especially when compared to Park’s achievements. He even believes he may never reach his predecessor’s milestones but is determined to do his best to achieve further success with the Vietnamese national team.

The coach born in 1976 said: "I truly feel the pressure from Coach Park’s huge influence. People often compare me to him a lot. Sometimes I worry that if I don’t perform well, it might affect Coach Park’s reputation... Surpassing what Coach Park has done is impossible. I have never even thought about that.

Thanks to Coach Park, I had the opportunity to come to Vietnam. And who knows, maybe someday another Korean coach will follow this path because of what I am doing now. Therefore, I must try harder and achieve better results to uphold the pride and honor of Korean coaches."

For now, Coach Kim Sang Sik and his players will focus on their away match against Laos in the fifth round of Group F in the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers, before preparing for two important campaigns at SEA Games 33 and the 2026 AFC U23 Championship finals.

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