National soccer coach Dick Advocaat says he is proud of his players despite South Korea's failure to make the World Cup's second round with a 2-0 loss to Switzerland Friday.

In a post-game news conference Friday, he said that by putting five strikers in the game in the second half, South Korea controlled the game from then on after Switzerland had done so in the first half.

He also hailed the team's younger players for their performance in the game, and blasted bad referee decisions for contributing to the loss.

Expected to leave his job for another coaching post in Europe, Advocaat declined comment on his plans.