Korean football players acknowledge the crowd after a goalless draw against Palestine in the third round of the Asian World Cup qualification at Seoul World Cup Stadium in Seoul, Sept. 5. Yonhap
Following their goalless draw against Palestine in a World Cup qualifier marked by jeers from fans in Seoul on Thursday night, Korean players said they could have done without such a negative reaction.
Fans actually cheered for the players, trying to will them to score a few goals against an underdog team at Seoul World Cup Stadium. But those supporters had decidedly different reactions when it came to the team's head coach, Hong Myung-bo, and the man who gave him the job, Korea Football Association (KFA) President Chung Mong-gyu.
Chung and the rest of the KFA have been heavily criticized for lacking transparency in their coaching hiring process, and Hong has been hammered for breaking his earlier promise with fans of his former club, Ulsan HD FC, that he would never leave them for the national team.
Hong was jeered during the prematch introduction. Whenever Hong was shown on the two scoreboards at the stadium, fans let their feelings known again. They also held up signs calling for Chung's head and mocking Hong as a liar.
Son Heung-min, Korea's captain, said it was "upsetting" to hear those boos for the coach. Son is one of just two players on the current team who also played for Hong during the coach's first stint from 2013 to 2014.
"I can't speak for those fans. I think they had a coach they wanted," Son said. "But we can't change this decision. The coach is already in place. As captain of this team, I'd like to ask our fans for their love and support."
Son Heung-min leaves a football field after the game against Palestine in the third round of the Asian World Cup qualification at Seoul World Cup Stadium in Seoul, Sept. 5. Yonhap
Even more boos rained down after the heavily favored Korea failed to come away with a victory. That prompted defender Kim Min-jae to walk toward the Korean supporters' section and ask them to calm down.
Some fans reacted angrily to Kim's gesture, and launched into cyber attack on his Instagram page.
Son said an incident like Kim's should never happen again because the relationship between fans and their national team should always be positive.
"They came here to root for us. And if they can keep things in a positive mood, it will help us and motivate us to compete harder," Son added. "At least when we're playing at home, we shouldn't be creating our own enemies."
Kim explained that he was not being hostile toward fans, and that he was only asking them for support.
"I was not being aggressive at all. I was just a bit disappointed that some people wanted us to fail," Kim said. "I see that people have left some comments on my social media page. People can have their own opinions but I just hope they understand it wasn't anything like what they think it was."
Kim said he and his teammates all appreciated another big turnout at Seoul World Cup Stadium.
"We're just sorry that we didn't reward them with a good performance," the Bayern Munich defender said. "We should have played better. We will try to win our next match."
Midfielder Lee Kang-in, Korea's top offensive engine on an otherwise unproductive night for the team, also pleaded with fans for support for Hong.
"I can't speak for everyone, But honestly, as a member of the national team, I find it very unfortunate that we started our match with boos," Lee said. "We trust our head coach 100 percent. We will follow him and we believe he will help us play winning football. Obviously, fans must be upset with the result tonight, but I hope they will cheer for us because we'll try our best to bring them better results." (Yonhap)