Mick McCarthy, the manager of English Championship club Wolverhampton Wanderers, on Wednesday ruled himself out of the running to become the next coach of South Korea's national team.
McCarthy had been named by the South Korean FA on a two-man shortlist for the vacancy, along with former Lyon and Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier.
But, in a statement on his club's Web site, McCarthy said he had decided to stay at Wolves.
"I was very flattered to be contacted and to be considered a candidate alongside someone of the calibre of Gerard Houllier," said McCarthy, who has previously coached Sunderland and the Republic of Ireland national team. "But I have always been committed to the job at Wolves. I love it here and, having spoken to [Wolves owner] Steve Morgan, I made it clear I'm staying."
In contrast, Houllier, who is now technical director of the French Football Federation, hinted that he was considering taking on the South Korea job.
"I'm technical director for the moment," Houllier said on Wednesday. "It is an interesting challenge and there is lots of work to do here. For the future, we'll see."
South Korean FA spokesman You Young-cheul had earlier said that a decision on the new head coach would probably be made today.
The South Koreans are looking for a foreign coach to succeed Dutchman Pim Verbeek, who resigned in July after South Korea's third-place finish in the Asian Cup.
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