Gwangju: The South Korean football league said Friday it has warned a club head coach for shoving a player in an on-field outburst this week.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the Korea Professional Football League (K League) decided not to open disciplinary proceedings against Gwangju FC head coach Lee Jung-hyo and to instead give him "a stern warning in writing" for his action during a match on Monday, the Children's Day holiday.
After the first half against Gimcheon Sangmu FC at Gwangju World Cup Stadium in the southwestern city of Gwangju, Lee stormed out of the bench and called for midfielder Oh Hu-seong to come to him. When captain Lee Kang-hyun tried to hold back the coach, the bench boss shoved him aside and made a beeline for Oh.
Coach Lee then angrily grabbed Oh by his left arm and pointed at a spot on the field, apparently reminding the player of an earlier mistake, and then pushed Oh with both hands.
Lee was especially criticized for losing his composure in front of thousands of young fans in the stands and more watching on television on Children's Day.
The K League reviewed the incident over the past two days but chose not to discipline him beyond warning him, after Lee told the league that he would take extra caution.
"The incident occurred in front of a big crowd and violently pushing a player on the field is an act that could have been avoided," the league office said. "Considering that the coach has caused damage to the dignity of the entire league, we gave him a stern warning and urged him to prevent a recurrence."
Lee, who took over Gwangju FC's reins in 2022, has been known as an emotional coach with a penchant for outbursts.
Oh took to social media late Thursday to announce that Lee had apologized to him for his action and there were no lingering hard feelings between the two.