Recently, on his personal Instagram page, coach Shin Tae-yong shared about the rumors surrounding him after he left Indonesian football.
"Hello everyone, I returned to Korea safely and had a wonderful Lunar New Year holiday thanks to the warm welcome of Indonesian fans. I still remember the hospitality I received at the airport.
I came back home without any excuse because I love Indonesia and Indonesian football. However, some Indonesian media still reported stories that were not true.
Let me say it again, none of the rumors circulating right now are true. If this situation continues, next time it won't end like this.
In the end, I want to ask those who attack me with the story is not true.
Previously, Budi Setiawan - founder of the Football Institute - announced the research results from the social media analysis platform Drone Emprit. This person said that coach Shin Tae-yong used tricks on social media, creating "buzzers" (social media accounts with the purpose of manipulating public opinion) to create a wave of support for himself after the Korean coach was fired in Indonesia.
According to Drone Emprit, there were a total of 6,090 posts, 18,156 mentions, and 14,478 discussions about Shin Tae-yong's farewell to Indonesian football on social media.
Notably, the hashtag #STYstay was widely circulated on social media platform X (Twitter). In addition to personal and public accounts, this hashtag was also shared by bot accounts with duplicate content. This made the founder of the Football Institute suspect that someone was behind the incident to intentionally increase public opinion after the incident involving Mr. Shin Tae-yong.
The Korean coach was fired by the Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) on January 6, 2025 after 5 years of leading the national team of thousands of islands. This is quite surprising when Mr. Shin Tae-yong has just extended his contract to lead the Indonesian team until 2027.
Just 2 days after announcing the departure of coach Shin Tae-yong, PSSI immediately appointed a new person, the Dutch strategist, former player Patrick Kluivert.
