Soccer-South Korea's Jeonbuk promote assistant Kim to head coach

K League champions Jeonbuk Motors named long-term assistant Kim Sang-sik as their new head coach on Tuesday, the former South Korea international replacing Jose Morais, who left the role earlier this month after two years in charge.

K League champions Jeonbuk Motors named long-term assistant Kim Sang-sik as their new head coach on Tuesday, the former South Korea international replacing Jose Morais, who left the role earlier this month after two years in charge. Morais had replaced Choi Kang-hee at the start of 2019 and guided Jeonbuk to back-to-back league titles but the Portuguese had made it clear he did not intend to extend his two-year deal.

Despite winning Jeonbuk's first league and cup double, Morais's stint ended in disappointment after the club were eliminated from the Asian Champions League group stage. His replacement, Kim, was the ideal candidate to take the helm, said the club.

"Given his strong leadership and tactical acumen, Kim Sang-sik was the perfect fit as our head coach," they said in a statement. "With his deep understanding of the team, Kim can embody our philosophy better than anyone." Kim made over 100 appearances for Jeonbuk between 2009-2013 and has served as their assistant coach since 2014.

Jeonbuk did not disclose the length of the deal Kim had signed. While Kim has been a big part of Jeonbuk's success he said he would be pushing the side to achieve even more.

"I won't rest on the laurels of this year, and I'll dedicate myself to making us an even better club," Kim said. "I have faith in my players."