Quick Facts
CapricornBiography
Choi Soon-ho (Hangul: 최순호; Hanja: 崔淳鎬; born 10 January 1962 in Cheongju) is a South Korean football manager and former professional football player. He is known as one of the most prominent players in Korean football history.
Career
Source:
Han Hong-ki, the former Pohang Steelworks FC manager, wanted Choi will grow as a versatile player by utilizing his great tactical intelligence. He played as a playmaker, and moved wide scope in the field. Choi was noted for his speed, ball control, passing skills and vision. Choi recorded 100 appearances, 23 goals, 19 assists, and won two titles in the K League.
In September 1980, Choi was named in the South Korea squad for the 1980 AFC Asian Cup. He scored seven goals including two goals against Kuwait, and a hat-trick against United Arab Emirates in the group stage. South Korea met Kuwait again at the final but lost this time. He became the youngest top scorer at age 18 in the history of AFC Asian Cup.
In November 1980, Choi was named in the South Korea under-20 squad for the 1980 AFC Youth Championship. He scored four goals and won the championship. In the same year, Choi was named for the 1981 FIFA World Youth Championship. He had two goals and two assists against Italy and defeated them 4–1.
Choi was selected for the South Korea squad for the 1986 FIFA World Cup. He had one goal and eight assists in eight matches of the qualification. This record means contributing more than half of team's 17 goals. He scored a goal against Italy in the group stage.
After the 1981 World Youth Championship, a Serie A club Juventus was interested in Choi. Their interest lasted until 1986 World Cup, but Pohang Steelworks consistently rejected their offer.
Career statistics
Club
Source:
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Club | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Pohang Steelworks | 1983 | K League | 2 | 2 | — | 2 | 2 | |||
| 1984 | K League | 24 | 14 | — | 24 | 14 | ||||
| 1985 | K League | 5 | 2 | — | 5 | 2 | ||||
| 1986 | K League | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 1 | |||
| 1987 | K League | 16 | 2 | — | 16 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 55 | 21 | 1 | 0 | 56 | 21 | ||||
| Lucky-Goldstar | 1988 | K League | 11 | 1 | — | 11 | 1 | |||
| 1989 | K League | 9 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | ||||
| 1990 | K League | 8 | 1 | — | 8 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 28 | 2 | — | 28 | 2 | |||||
| Pohang Steelworks | 1991 | K League | 16 | 0 | — | 16 | 0 | |||
| Rodez | 1992–93 | Ligue 2 | 18 | 2 | 18 | 2 | ||||
| Career total | 117 | 25 | 1 | 0 | 118 | 25 | ||||
International
Source:
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Korea | 1980 | 8 | 8 |
| 1981 | 4 | 2 | |
| 1982 | 11 | 4 | |
| 1983 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1984 | 6 | 2 | |
| 1985 | 12 | 7 | |
| 1986 | 9 | 4 | |
| 1987 | 4 | 0 | |
| 1988 | 5 | 2 | |
| 1989 | 10 | 1 | |
| 1990 | 18 | 0 | |
| 1991 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 97 | 30 | |
International goals
- Results list South Korea's goal tally first.
| Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 25, 1980 | Chuncheon, South Korea |  Indonesia | 1 goal | 3-0 | 1980 Korea Cup |
| September 16, 1980 | Kuwait City, Kuwait |  Malaysia | 1 goal | 1-1 | 1980 AFC Asian Cup |
| September 19, 1980 | Kuwait City, Kuwait |  Qatar | 1 goal | 2-0 | 1980 AFC Asian Cup |
| September 21, 1980 | Kuwait City, Kuwait |  Kuwait | 2 goals | 3-0 | 1980 AFC Asian Cup |
| September 24, 1980 | Kuwait City, Kuwait |  United Arab Emirates | 3 goals | 4-1 | 1980 AFC Asian Cup |
| April 24, 1981 | Kuwait City, Kuwait |  Thailand | 2 goals | 5-1 | 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| March 21, 1982 | Seoul, South Korea |  Japan | 1 goal | 3-0 | Friendly match |
| June 11, 1982 | Gwangyang, South Korea |  Bahrain | 1 goal | 3-0 | 1982 Korea Cup |
| November 21, 1982 | New Delhi, India |  South Yemen | 2 goals | 3-0 | 1982 Asian Games |
| April 19, 1984 | Singapore, Singapore | Bahrain | 1 goal | 1-0 | 1984 Summer Olympics qualification |
| April 22, 1984 | Singapore, Singapore |  New Zealand | 1 goal | 2-0 | 1984 Summer Olympics qualification |
| June 6, 1985 | Daejeon, South Korea | Thailand | 1 goal | 3-2 | 1985 Korea Cup |
| June 8, 1985 | Gwangju, South Korea | Bahrain | 2 goals | 3-0 | 1985 Korea Cup |
| June 15, 1985 | Seoul, South Korea |  Iraq | 2 goals | 2-0 | 1985 Korea Cup |
| July 30, 1985 | Jakarta, Indonesia | Indonesia | 1 goal | 4-1 | 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| December 14, 1985 | Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico |  Algeria | 1 goal | 2-0 | 1985 Mexico Tournament |
| June 10, 1986 | Puebla, Mexico |  Italy | 1 goal | 2-3 | 1986 FIFA World Cup |
| September 20, 1986 | Busan, South Korea |  India | 1 goal | 3-0 | 1986 Asian Games |
| October 3, 1986 | Seoul, South Korea | Indonesia | 2 goals | 4-0 | 1986 Asian Games |
| June 19, 1988 | Suwon, South Korea |  Zambia | 1 goal | 4-0 | 1988 Korea Cup |
| October 26, 1988 | Tokyo, Japan | Japan | 1 goal | 1-0 | Friendly match |
| May 27, 1989 | Seoul, South Korea | Malaysia | 1 goal | 3-0 | 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Honours
Player
Pohang Steelworks
- K League 1: 1986
- Korean National Championship runner-up: 1985
Lucky-Goldstar
- K League 1: 1990
- Korean National Championship: 1988
South Korea U20
- AFC Youth Championship: 1980
South Korea
- Asian Games: 1986
- Dynasty Cup: 1990
- Afro-Asian Cup of Nations: 1987
Individual
- AFC Asian Cup top scorer: 1980
- AFC Asian Cup Team of the Tournament: 1980
- Korean Football Best XI: 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986
- AFC Youth Championship Most Valuable Player: 1980
- AFC Youth Championship top scorer: 1980
- K League 1 Best XI: 1984
- Korean Footballer of the Year: 1990
- K League 30th Anniversary Best XI: 2013
Manager
Ulsan Hyundai Mipo
- Korea National League: 2007, 2008
- Korean President's Cup: 2008
Individual
- Korea National League Manager of the Year: 2007, 2008
- Korean President's Cup Best Manager: 2008
