S . Korea to add technical advisor , fitness coach to nat ' l football team coaching staff SEOUL , April 5 , ( Yonhap ) -- The South Korean men ' s national football team will hire a technical advisor and a fitness coach to support its beleaguered boss Uli Stielike , an official with the Korea Football Association ( KFA ) said Wednesday . The KFA technical committee , led by Lee Yong - soo , plans to add two members to Stielike ' s backroom staff to help the national team qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia , according to the official , who asked not to be named . South Korea are looking for a ninth consecutive World Cup appearance but have disappointed fans with a mediocre performance last month . " The technical committee decided to add a technical advisor who can provide details and characteristics of national team - caliber players to the national team coaching staff , " the official said . " The advisor will help Stielike form the national team with a wide range of players . " Stielike has been in hot water after his team fell 1 - 0 to China and collected a nail - biting 1 - 0 win over Syria at home with uninspiring performances . While angry fans here called for Stielike ' s head , questioning his tactical acumen and his selection of players , the technical committee on Monday decided to keep the German head coach at the helm and promised to provide more support to him . In this file photo taken on March 28 , 2017 , South Korean men ' s national football team head coach Uli Stielike ( 3 rd from L ) is congratulated by the national team staff after South Korea beat Syria 1 - 0 in their 2018 FIFA World Cup Asian qualifier at Seoul World Cup Stadium in Seoul . ( Yonhap ) The technical committee , comprised of 12 members , previously planned to recruit a foreign chief assistant coach , but failed to land a deal . Stielike currently has Seol Ki - hyeon and Carlos Alberto Armua as his assistants , while Cha Sang - kwang serves as goalkeeper coach . Former national team defender Cha Du - ri works as an advanced scout . " Stielike observes players in the K League , but since he is a foreigner , it ' s not easy to grasp every player ' s characteristics , " the official said . " All members of the technical committee will check national team - caliber players ' performance every week , and will have a meeting before the new technical advisor gathers data and give them to Stielike . " With three matches remaining in the final Asian qualifying round for the 2018 World Cup , South Korea are second in Group A that also features Iran , Uzbekistan , Syria , China and Qatar . The Taeguk Warriors have 13 points from four wins , one draw and two losses , four points behind leader Iran and one point above No . 3 Uzbekistan . Only the top two teams in the six - team group directly advance to the World Cup in Russia , while the third - place team must go through playoff rounds to enter the world football ' s showpiece event . South Korea ' s next match is against Qatar on June 13 . The national team will then host Iran on Aug . 31 before taking on Uzbekistan five days later on the road . The official said the new fitness coach will start working with Stielike to prepare for the qualifier against Qatar that is expected to be played in hot weather . Armua currently manages the national team players ' fitness , but the technical committee believes the addition of another fitness expert will further help the national team . kdon @ yna . co . kr ( END )