After Two Months Training, Sacked! What Went Wrong with Shin Tae-yong at Ulsan?

Last season, Ulsan HD FC were the kings of South Korean football after clinching the K League 1 title. However, just a few months later, the club seems to have lost its way and has once again sacked its manager for the second time in a single season. The latest casualty is Shin Tae-yong.

Great hope accompanied Shin's arrival in August 2025. Shin arrived with a brilliant track record, having led the Indonesian National Team to the U-20 World Cup and delivering surprising performances in the 2023 Asian Cup. 

Ulsan believed Shin could restore the champion's mentality. However, reality unfolded differently.

South Korean club Ulsan HD FC officially sacked Shin Tae-yong after the former coach of the Indonesian national team achieved poor results from the 10 matches he oversaw.

Shin was only given two months. During that time, his team was never truly stable.

Shin, appointed in August, lasted only two months, managing only two wins in 10 matches across all competitions. Meanwhile, the other eight matches resulted in four draws and four losses.

The decision to sack Shin was announced briefly but firmly by the club.

“Ulsan HD FC have ended their partnership with coach Shin Tae-yong,” wrote Ulsan HD via its social media account on Thursday, October 9, 2025.

The two victories achieved by Ulsan HD under Shin were a 1-0 win against Jeju SK in K League 1 on August 9th and a 2-1 victory over Chengdu Rongcheng in the AFC Champions League on September 17th.

Nevertheless, the club paid its final respects.

“Thank you to coach Shin Tae-yong for your hard work for the team so far and I will support you in the future,” the club added.

Declining Performance, Lost Identity

It wasn't just about winning or losing. Ulsan lost its identity as a dominant team. They were unstable, lacked sharpness, and were not solid.

These poor results saw last season's league champions, Ulsan HD, plummet to 10th place with 37 points from 32 matches.

Even worse, the overall performance this season shows a significant decline:

They managed only nine wins, with the rest being 10 draws and 13 losses.

In terms of productivity, the team seemed to have lost its bite. Shin's team scored only 10 goals and conceded 16.

For a club as big as Ulsan, these numbers aren't just statistics but a danger alarm. A championship team cannot afford to lose its attacking threat, let alone its winning mentality.

Not Just Shin's Problem, But a Systemic Crisis

What makes the situation even more complicated is that Shin is not the first coach to become a scapegoat.

This is the second time the club has sacked its coach this season. Previously, they replaced Kim Pan-gon in August after failing to secure a win in 10 matches.

Two sackings in one season indicate that Ulsan has failed not only tactically, but also structurally and managerially. 

However, in modern football, champion clubs cannot live on nostalgia. With a position in the lower half of the table and diminishing chances of Asian qualification, management chose the quickest path: replacing the coach.

Shin arrived carrying hope, but a fragile system, unimproving performance, and the high expectations of champions made his position impossible to maintain. 

In the end, it wasn't because of one defeat, but because Ulsan saw no future with him.