Bento’s 4-year perseverance felt after visiting Qatar

Coach Paulo Bento (53) did not betray his time.

His ‘build-up soccer’, which he has been pushing for 4 years with his perseverance, proved that even Asian teams can lead the game on the World Cup stage against world-class powerhouses, and now it’s time to think about how to carry on the great legacy he left behind.

The Korean national soccer team achieved the achievement of advancing to the round of 16 at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, which just ended with the victory of Argentina on the 19th (Korean time).

It has been 12 years since the 2010 World Cup in South Africa led by former coach Heo Jeong-moo, and it is the third time in total, including the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, which wrote the legend of the semifinals.

Considering the pessimistic outlook ahead of the Qatar World Cup, it is a pleasant result that missed the expectations of many.

Korean football’s advance to the round of 16 was followed by the efforts of the players, such as ‘captain’ Son Heung-min (Tottenham)’s mask fighting spirit, Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton)’s theater goal against Portugal, and the appearance of new striker Cho Kyu-seong (Jeonbuk), but with four years of perseverance, Korea The Portuguese coach who changed soccer cannot be left out.

Coach Bento, who took office on August 23, right after the 2018 World Cup in Russia, led the Korean national team for a long period of four years and four months in the special situation of the Corona 19 pandemic.

Coach Bento’s philosophy, which put forward a so-called ‘build-up soccer’, a soccer that is led based on possession, did not clear doubts until the World Cup.

In the Asian final qualifiers for the Qatar World Cup, which was played until the 10th game, it was confirmed in 8 games, but the question of whether his soccer would work against strong players on the world stage continued.

It wasn’t really a crisis. After losing 0-3 in the Japanese expedition in March last year, public opinion toward Bento rapidly deteriorated.

Even when he lost the championship 토토 0-3 to Japan in the East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Championship (East Asian Cup) in July this year, which was mainly played by domestic players, there were loud voices calling for him to be sacked.

In fact, even within the Korea Football Association, there was a lack of trust in Bento. At the beginning of this year, after the final qualifying round, discussions on renewing the contract came and went, but in the end, the disagreement could not be narrowed down and collapsed.

There may be financial problems, but if the association had a firm belief in Bento soccer, it would have caught Bento regardless of the success or failure of the World Cup.

Nevertheless, the association’s decision to break through the main line with Bento deserves applause. If the manager had been changed like in the past, like roasting beans, it is clear that there would be no current round of 16.

With the success of Bentuho, Korean football has been convinced that it can successfully host the World Cup with one command tower system for four years.

Former coach Huh, who made the first round of 16 before coach Bento, also took charge of the national team for 31 months. The more time there was, the higher the chance of success in the World Cup.

On the other hand, the 2006 Germany World Cup Dick Advocard (9 months), the 2014 Brazil World Cup Hong Myung-bo (13 months), and the 2018 Russia World Cup Shin Tae-yong (13 months), all of whom were eliminated in the group stage, were all less than a year old.

Coach Lionel Scaloni, who gave Argentina its first World Cup victory in 36 years, also took office in November 2018 and built the team for four years.

In addition, coach Didier Deschamps of France, who missed the World Cup twice in a row, took over in 2012 and has been in charge for 10 years. This shows how important ‘patience’ is for success in the World Cup.

The four years left by Bento is a special legacy that was not in Korean football before. If you rejoice and consume this as a one-time success, your success in Qatar will be a one-off.