Sweden have apologised for spying on the South Korea squad at a pre-World Cup training camp.
South Korea, who play Sweden on Monday, said they had responded by swapping players’ numbers to confuse the Swedish snooper because – in the words of their manager, Shin Tae-yong – “it’s very difficult for westerners to distinguish between Asians”.
The Sweden manager, Janne Andersson, offered his apology for the incident at the training camp in Austria, where a member of the Sweden coaching staff got into a closed training session and was told to leave. The Swede thought the training session was open, Andersson said, and left when asked.
“He watched from more of a distance as a result,” Andersson said but did not comment on allegations that the individual in question, Lars Jacobsson, had rented a house across the road from South Korea’s training ground.
Jacobsson was quoted as saying: “It took a long car journey into the mountains to reach the house but it was a perfect spot to observe the Korean team’s training.”
Andersson said: “It’s very important we show respect for opponents, always and in every way. If it has been perceived in another way, we apologise.”
Shin said such analysis of opponents was the norm and had a ruse of his own, making his players use different shirt numbers.
“We switched them around because we didn’t want to show everything and to try to confuse them,” he said. “They might know a few of our players but it is very difficult for westerners to distinguish between Asians and that’s why we did it.
“All coaches probably feel their opponents are always spying on them. I think it’s perfectly natural that we all try to get as much information on each other as we can.”