2 Portuguese coaches named to S. Korean nat’l football team staff

Two Portuguese coaches will join the staff for the South Korean men’s national football team.

The Korea Football Association (KFA) announced Wednesday that Joao Aroso and Tiago Maia will work alongside head coach Hong Myung-bo for the Taegeuk Warriors.

Aroso, 51, will be serving as the top assistant coach and tactical coach, while Maia, 40, will be in charge of tactical analysis.

Aroso began his coaching career with the Portuguese side Sporting CP in 2003. He later served as assistant coach for the Portuguese men’s senior national team and head coach of the country’s under-15 national team.

Aroso also coached Morocco’s U-20 national team briefly. Most recently, he had been the technical director for the Portuguese club FC Famalicao.

Aroso worked under former South Korea boss Paulo Bento for eight years — four at Sporting CP and four at the Portuguese national team.

“Coach Joao Aroso is a proven tactician who has stayed on top of the latest trends in international football,” Hong said. “I expect him to help our national team with his flexible and proactive tactics.”

Maia was the chief scout for Sporting CP from 2005 to 2011, and later worked as assistant coaches for Loko Moscow in Russia and Vitoria Setubal and Estoril Praia in Portugal. In his most recent job, Maia was a scout for the Portuguese club Benfica’s B squad.

According to the KFA, Hong settled on the two new coaches after interviewing them in Europe last month. It added that talks with a foreign-born physical trainer fell through during the final stages, and the position will be filled later.

Aroso and Maia are scheduled to arrive in South Korea this week and attend K League matches this weekend.

South Korea’s first match under Hong will be Sept. 5 against Palestine in Seoul. It will be the opening Group B match of the third round in the Asian qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.