The conflict between Ulsan Hyundai manager Hong Myung-bo (54) of the professional football K League 1 (Part 1) and Amano Jun (32), a Japanese midfielder who transferred from Ulsan to Jeonbuk Hyundai, is escalating into a battle for truth.
Coach Hong Myung-bo met with reporters at the 2023 K-League Winter Field Training Media Camp held at a hotel in Ulsan on the 16th and said, “There is a problem that is an issue these days (conflict with Amano). I have expressed my thoughts on this before. Even now, the thoughts I have toward Amano have not changed.” Before even asking questions from the reporters, director Hong first raised the issue with Amano.
The conflict between coach Hong Myung-bo and Amano is overheating even before the 2023 season begins. On the 11th, director Hong Myung-bo first said, “Amano is the worst Japanese I have ever met. He lied and left for Jeonbuk. He said, ‘Money doesn’t matter,’ and he wanted to stay (in Ulsan). That player left for Jeonbuk only for money. If he had talked about money from the start, he could have helped negotiate,” he raised his voice.
Amano, who played for Yokohama Marinos in the Japanese J-League, moved to Ulsan on loan last season and entered the Korean stage. He played 30 league games and scored 9 goals, helping Ulsan win the championship in 17 years. Amano was initially likely to sign a contract with Ulsan, but chose Jeonbuk, which offered an additional 125 million won in annual salary. The total amount of Amano’s annual salary is not disclosed.
Stigmatized as a ‘traitor’, Amano calmly dealt with it. On the 12th, I met with reporters and said, “Director Hong Myung-bo is a benefactor. He respects it,” he replied, saying, “I regret that remark (the worst Japanese player).” Amano continued, “We have never formally (talked about) the contract. Ulsan sincerely thought (about my stay) and never made a seat,” he emphasized.
Amano’s transfer has become a truth game. When asked if he knew everything about Amano’s contract, manager Hong Myung-bo replied, “I knew everything about the contract.” At the same time, coach Hong said, “Listen (from the club) after a while. I’m going to tell you exactly,” he said, revealing his uncomfortable planting. 스포츠토토
The Ulsan club released data related to Amano’s transfer right after the press conference for manager Hong Myung-bo. Ulsan discussed a 2023 contract through Amano’s agent in July of last year. Then, on October 26, Amano said that after meeting with manager Hong, the team and the player had a final meeting the next day. On October 31st and November 3rd and 4th, Amano’s original team Yokohama sent a loan proposal, player contract, and agreement, explaining the transfer situation.
Amano explained the background of the transfer to Jeonbuk, saying, “I accepted that there was no intention of signing (with me) because there was no official offer from the club (Ulsan) even after the season was over.” In this regard, Jeonbuk said, “Ulsan made an offer in mid-November, and at this time, Amano’s heart was already leaning toward Jeonbuk.”
The Ulsan Secretariat held its own briefing and said, “We received the terms of the contract presented by Jeonbuk through Amano. It is true that (we) had a hard time accepting that condition. Amano said, ‘I want to stay in Ulsan if a certain part (a salary increase) is accepted’. Once again, I wanted to hear the exact conditions from the player side, and then I sent a loan offer and a contract. The pre-conditions have been agreed upon,” he stressed.
In response to director Hong Myung-bo’s criticism of Amano, there is also a controversy over whether it was a personal attack. Regarding this, director Hong said, “I never made a personal attack.” Director Hong said, “When I was living in Japan, there was a manager I respected. I thought I wanted to be that kind of manager for Amano. It didn’t work out as a result, but I didn’t personally attack him.”