Coach Kim Sang-sik's emotions exploded just like Mr. Park Hang-seo's on the day of the final.

Since becoming Philippe Troussier’s successor, coach Kim Sang-sik has rarely had strong reactions. But the semi-final match against the Philippines U.23 team was different.

Coach Kim Sang-sik reacted strongly even though it was a small mistake.

On the afternoon of July 25, the U.23 Vietnam team faced the U.23 Philippines team in the semi-finals of the 2025 Southeast Asian U.23 Championship. This was the first knockout match, in the first official tournament of coach Kim Sang-sik as the captain of the U.23 Vietnam team. Perhaps, because of those special factors, the emotions of the Korean strategist were pushed to a climax.

In the 16th minute, after a very smooth ball control by defender Vo Anh Quan, the referee blew the whistle again, allowing the U.23 Philippines team to throw in the ball when he thought the ball was out of bounds. Coach Kim Sang-sik was harsh with both the referee and the linesman and received a yellow card. This is rare. Normally, Coach Kim only reacts strongly to more important situations. For example, he received a yellow card in the first leg of the semi-final against Singapore at the 2024 AFF Cup, after Xuan Son's valid goal was disallowed.

Coach Kim Sang-sik reacts to the referee

PHOTO: DONG NGUYEN KHANG

He was quite harsh and received a yellow card. The referee supervisor also had to intervene.

PHOTO: DONG NGUYEN KHANG

Then he turned to the linesman to show his attitude.

PHOTO: DONG NGUYEN KHANG

Ultimate regret

The U.23 Vietnam team had a difficult time against the U.23 Philippines team. The young "Golden Star Warriors" fell behind and had to work very hard to successfully turn the game around. Therefore, coach Kim Sang-sik was quite tense throughout the match. In the 78th minute, after Phi Hoang's cross, Van Thuan sent the ball into the sky despite finishing in a very favorable position.

After this incident, Coach Kim Sang-sik knelt down on the field and threw away his coaching card. He expressed his regret at the missed opportunity. At that time, the U.23 Vietnam team was leading 2-1, but Coach Kim Sang-sik understood that the 1-goal gap was too fragile.

Coach Kim closed his eyes, shook his head, and turned away regretfully.

Before that, he threw the card on the field and knelt down.

PHOTO: DONG NGUYEN KHANG

The referee supervisor also laughed at coach Kim Sang-sik's reaction. The English assistant also expressed regret after Van Thuan missed the opportunity.

PHOTO: DONG NGUYEN KHANG

In the end, Coach Kim Sang-sik was still very attentive to his players. He went out to shake hands with each player. He not only praised the starting players but also had kind words for those who did not get to play.

PHOTO: DONG NGUYEN KHANG

Those are very "human" reactions of Coach Kim Sang-sik, showing that he loves his job, loves the U.23 Vietnam team and is dedicating himself to Vietnamese football, similar to his compatriot Park Hang-seo. There is still one more important match ahead for the U.23 Vietnam team, hopefully Coach Kim Sang-sik will have more explosive emotions and happiness when winning the championship.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hlv-kim-sang-sik-cam-xuc-bung-no-het-nhu-ong-park-hang-seo-trong-ngay-vao-chung-ket-18525072603063892.htm