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| 출처=울버햄튼 SNS |
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| APYonhap News |
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'The Korean Guy'Hwang Hee-chan (29, Wolverhampton)'s coach brutality continues.
Wolverhampton announced the replacement of Portuguese coach Vitor Pereira on the 2nd (Korea time). After a slump of not winning a single game in 10 games after the opening of the English Premier League (EPL) in the 2025-2026 season, he was eventually notified of his dismissal less than three months after the opening. Coach Pereira, who took over during the last season and led the team to stay, signed a long-term contract until 2028 in September in recognition of his contribution, but he remained lacking from team composition to tactical management. Wolverhampton is at the bottom of the table with two draws and eight losses and two points as of the 10th round. Early changes were inevitable to stay as it was eight points apart from Burnley (10 points), ranked 17th, who is in the right to remain.
The collision between Pereira and some players, including shouting at home fans in the supporters' seats after losing 2-3 to Burnley at Molineux Stadium in their home stadium on the 26th of last month, directly hit Pereira's position. In an away game in Fulham on the 2nd, some Wolverhampton fans sang a mock cheer song, "'Ooh coach will be replaced tomorrow morning.'" In fact, Wolverhampton's leadership made a decision the day after the game. Pereira played with several Korean players, including Seok Hyun-jun (Namyangju) at Al Ahli (Saudi Arabia), Kim Seung-gyu (FC Tokyo) at Al Shabab (Saudi Arabia), and Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) at Fenerbahce.
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As a result, Hwang Hee-chan, who has been playing for Wolverhampton for four years since 2021, has also broken up with what he is familiar with during the season. After joining the Wolf Corps, Hwang Hee-chan worked with four leaders: Bruno Raz (Portugal), Julen Lopetegui (Spain), Gary O'Neill (England), and Pereira. Raz (October 2022), O'Neill (December 2024) and Pereira all stepped down during the first half. Coach Lopetegui put down his baton just before the 2023-2024 season. Of the four coaches, O'Neill has led 63 games, the most. Pereira played 38 games and won 14 games with a 36.8% winning rate. Amid these frequent leadership changes, Wolverhampton's performance has gradually fallen to 10th-13th-14th-16th place in the EPL over the past four seasons.
According to British Sports Radio Talk Sports, Brandon Rogers, who voluntarily resigned from Celtic at the end of October, is considered the likely next head coach. Rogers, who has led Swansea City and Liverpool in the past, is also showing interest in returning to the EPL stage. Former Leverkusen coach Erik ten Hag, who coached Manchester United, is also a candidate. Coach Ten Hag is in charge of Manchester United from 2022 to 2024 and knows well about the EPL environment. However, he humiliated himself to step down after commanding just three games in Bundesliga history at Leverkusen in September. Former Besiktas coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is also expected to be a candidate.
Wolverhampton will go on an away trip to the Chelsea League on the 9th. Hwang Hee-chan played 10 games, including the Cup, mainly as a substitute resource in the second half of this season, scoring one goal and one assist.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
