Professional soccer K League 1 (Part 1) Suwon Samsung fell into a swamp of draws from the beginning of the season and fell to the ‘bottom rank’, and eventually took out a replacement card for the command tower. Director Lee Byeong-geun (49) was sacked just one year after being appointed.
On the 17th, Suwon said, 메이저놀이터“We notified of the hardship through a meeting with manager Lee at the clubhouse.” Prior to the appointment of a successor coach, the ‘Super Match’ with FC Seoul, which will be held on the 22nd, is planned to be digested as an acting manager system, which will be announced on the 18th after internal discussions.
Director Lee’s resignation was a foretold step. Suwon announced an uneasy start this season as it lost 0-1 to Gwangju FC, a ‘promoted team’, from the opening game of the K-League. Then Jeonbuk Hyundai (1-1 draw), Suwon FC (1-2 loss), Daejeon Hana Citizen (1-3 loss), Gangwon FC (1-1 draw), Ulsan Hyundai (1-2 loss). There were no victories. It naturally fell to the ‘lowest’.
There were signs of a rebound. Suwon reported its first win of the season with a 3-1 win against Ansan Greekers (second division) in the third round of the FA Cup on the 12th. In particular, for the first time this year, he earned positive income by scoring more than two goals in one game.
Suwon, however, could not use their strength in the K-League, which came back. Earlier, on the 15th, he failed to win again against Jeju United (2-3 loss) and tasted frustration. In the end, ahead of the ‘Super Match’, it was decided to sack coach Lee due to poor performance.
In recent years, while hoping for fruit without proper investment, Suwon has taken out a hard card without resolving the root cause whenever there is a crisis such as sluggish performance. In particular, the time to change the command tower is quite short. It’s not called the ‘Poisoned Holy Grail’ for nothing.
Meanwhile, coach Lee is from a legend in Suwon. As a player, he joined Suwon in 1996 and played an active role until moving to Daegu FC in 2006. After retiring from active duty in 2007, he began his leadership career, starting as a coach in Suwon in 2013, going through head coach and acting manager, and then moving to Daegu FC in 2019 to serve as head coach and manager again. Then, on April 18 of last year, he returned while holding the baton of his parent’s Suwon.
However, coach Lee failed to produce results last season, such as finishing in 10th place, and finally went to the promotion playoffs (PO), dramatically overpowering FC Anyang (second division) and remaining. This season was predicted to be different, but the sluggishness from the beginning was prolonged, and he was eventually hardened after one year of taking office.