Jurgen Klinsmann: South Korea appoint former Germany and United States boss as head coach

Jurgen Klinsmann worked as a member of the Fifa Technical Study Group at the World Cup in Qatar and also spent time as a BBC Sport pundit during the tournamentGetty Images

Jurgen Klinsmann worked as a member of the Fifa Technical Study Group at the World Cup in Qatar and also spent time as a BBC Sport pundit during the tournament

Former Germany and United States manager Jurgen Klinsmann has been appointed head coach of South Korea.

The 58-year-old, a World Cup winner as a player with Germany in 1990, has agreed a three-and-a-half-year deal.

Klinsmann's contract will take him up to and including the 2026 World Cup finals which are being held in Canada, Mexico and the United States.

His first game in charge will be a home friendly against Colombia in Ulsan on 24 March.

Klinsmann, scorer of 47 goals in 108 games for Germany, succeeds Paulo Bento, who ended four years as head coach by stepping down after guiding South Korea to the last 16 of last year's World Cup in Qatar.

"I am very happy and honoured to be following in the footsteps of great coaches who have directed the Korean national team, from Guus Hiddink to former coach Paulo Bento," Klinsmann said.

"I know that the Korean national team has been improving and achieving results over a long period of time.

"I will do my best to achieve successful results in the upcoming Asian Cup and 2026 World Cup."

Ex-Tottenham striker Klinsmann's most recent managerial role came more than three years ago when he stepped down after just 10 weeks in charge of Bundesliga side Hertha BSC.

Under his management, host nation Germany finished third at the 2006 World Cup and Klinsmann also led the United States into the knockout stages of the 2014 tournament.

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