June 2012
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The Korean Problem
In the 109th minute of the 2011 Asian Cup final against Australia, Japan finally broke the deadlock with a beautifully timed volley. But the name on the back of the scorer’s shirt could not be less Japanese. It was Lee Tadanari’s first international goal, but until 2004, he had hoped to score it for another nation.
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September 2011
2 posts
3 tags
World Soccer: Arsenal's Park Chu-Young →
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Arsenal's Park Chu-Young
As Park Chu-Young, captain of the South Korean national team, becomes the 9th player from the country to play in the English Premier League after a move to Arsenal, it’s time to have a closer look at his career.
Read more at In Bed With Maradona
August 2011
1 post
2 tags
South Korea's U-20s Prove Themselves
Whenever a South Korean national side participates in a major tournament, at both senior and youth levels, the normal ‘best of all time’ tag is almost always immediately attached to the team by country’s media and fans. This has been the way for every tournament since Italia’90 and it was no different in the recent World Cup in South Africa as the Taeguk Warriors, led by an inspired Park...
July 2011
3 posts
South Korea Squad v Japan
South Korea Coach Cho Gwang-rae has announced his 24-man squad who will face Alberto Zaccheroni’s Japan in a friendly match on 10 August at the Sapporo Dome.
The Coach also said that if Sunderland intend to start Ji Dong-won against the club’s opening match against Liverpool he is willing to send him back.
GK: Jung Sung-ryong (Suwon Bluewings), Kim Jin-hyun (Cerezo Osaka), Kim...
A Sad Debut
There have been a few outfield players who had to play in goal for their teams. In a Coppa Italia match in 2004 against Lecce, David Di Michele, who had bagged a brace, was forced to play as a goalkeeper after Samir Handanovič was sent off and eventually saved a Mirko Vucinic spot kick to ensure his team’s victory. Chelsea and Manchester United have had similar experiences in recent years with...
South Korea Announce U-20 Squad
South Korea have announced their 21-man squad for the U-20 World Cup in Columbia.
Ji Dong-won (Sunderland), Nam Tae-hee (Valenciennes), and Son Heung-min (Hamburg) were not called up after the respective clubs refused to release the players.
Lee Jong-ho of Chunnam and Gyeongnam’s Yoon Il-rok are definitely ones to keep an eye on.
The squad have been training at the National Football...
June 2011
6 posts
Welcome to the Korea Football Association
After visiting only the National Football Centre in Paju in the last few years, I went to the headquarters of the KFA for the first time since 2008.
East Asian Football Federation office
The first and only FIFA competition trophy won by South Korea.
The K-League trophy
Di-egocentric
Wolfsburg’s Koo Ja-cheol had a rather frank interview with Naver’s Magazine S (Korean).
He talked about the national team, Coach Felix Magath, how Farfan was the toughest opponent he ever played against, how lonely he felt in Germany, and most interestingly about former Juventus midfielder Diego.
Q: Let’s talk about your teammate. Is Diego really that selfish? Many Korean...
Shin Young-rok Wins the Battle of His Life..
Today, Jeju United striker Shin Young-rok, who suffered a heart failure during his team’s league match against Daegu in early May, has finally woken up after 50 days in a coma.
Jeju Coach Park Kyung-hoon (the grey haired man pictured above)
“[Shin] Young-rok couldn’t have done without the support of the citizens of Jeju and football fans. I really appreciated all the...
IBWM: Testing Times For The K-League
It seems Korean football really can’t catch a break this year. On 6 May, Incheon United’s Yoon Ki-won was found dead in his car, and the reason he chose to commit suicide still remains unknown. When Incheon United players burst into tears at the final whistle of their K-League match against Daejeon just two days after their teammate’s death, another piece of tragic news hit Korean football, as...
IBWM: Gone But Not Forgotten
Every football fan must have a special goal celebration that will never be forgotten, and I am sure that everyone who was at the “Big Bird“ Suwon World Cup Stadium on 6 September 2009 will forever remember one very special moment.
Read more at In Bed With Maradona
Stankovic's Words of Wisdom
Ahead of tomorrow’s international friendly match between South Korea and Serbia, Dejan Stankovic had some things to say about Korean football, his teammate Nagatomo and Asian players in general.
“We will do our best to play an entertaining game of football tomorrow. I have some good memories playing against South Korea as I played them on my international debut, scoring two...
May 2011
5 posts
AFC Champions League: Korean Dominance Continues
Although cynics could argue that it is a regression from last season where all four East Asian spots in the Quarterfinals of the AFC Champions League were taken by Korean clubs, to see all three remaining Korean clubs qualify from the First Knockout stages yesterday is simply an incredible achievement as Jeonbuk Motors comfortably beat Chinese outfit Tianjin Teda 3-0 on Tuesday while Seoul and...
Napoli: De Laurentiis' Search For A Director
With Inter’s Wesley Sneijder being linked to Manchester United, it was rumoured that the English champions might include Park Ji-sung into the seemingly laughably improbable deal. But it had been a while since a player from South Korea was even linked with a move to an Italian club after Luciano Gaucci’s ‘sacking’ of Ahn Jung-hwan and Lee Young-pyo’s refusal to join...
A Detailed History Of Asians In Calcio (Part...
Read more at Serie A Weekly
A Detailed History Of Asians In Calcio (Part Two)
Nakata’s impact was huge, as in the space of 2 years from 1999, the likes of Nanami Hiroshi (Japan), Ahn Jung-hwan (South Korea), Rahman Rezaei (Iran) and Ali Samereh (Iran) all took their chances to test themselves in Italy’s top division, although the latter three were all snapped by the same club – Perugia Calcio.
Read more at Serie A Weekly
A Detailed History Of Asians In Calcio (Part One)
Many Asian footballers are still suffering from the ‘bought as a shirt selling marketing tool’ cliché around Europe – and some, like Inamoto Junichi did with Arsenal, actually lived up to the unfair assumption – but there have been a number of Asian players who made their names on the Italian peninsula.
Read more at Serie A Weekly
February 2011
2 posts
Once upon a time... Silence actually was golden.
After the defeat in Sicily against Palermo earlier this month, Juventus announced they would opt for silenzio stampa, known as media silence in English, as a protest to the refereeing mistake which cost them the game.
Juventus again failed to maintain their much needed continuity last Sunday after a humiliating 2-0 defeat to the Giallorossi (and no, I’m not talking about Roma). It...
Claudio Marchisio, Juve's Tactical Weapon
By now, most juventini understand the role Claudio Marchisio is currently playing in for Juve, one that the Italians call la mezz’ala. I’ve recently had the pleasure of reading the latest issue of a magazine called il nuovo calcio, an Italian magazine focusing mainly on tactics. On it Juve’s Il Principino gave an exclusive interview, explaining his role under Gigi Delneri.
...
January 2011
4 posts
Last day of Mercato sees a Matri-mony and divorce.
On the last day of the January transfer window, Beppe Marotta has signed Alessandro Matri from Cagliari Calcio, against whom i bianconeri will play this Saturday, on loan. Juve have the right to buy the Milan youth product outright at the end of the season at a price of €15.5m, to be paid in 3 years. The price of the loan deal is €2.5m but, as Cagliari have bought the remaining half of Lorenzo...
Another trophy-less season? I blame Amauri and..
It’s really disappointing. Before the season kicked off. The realistic objectives were, as also underlined by President Andrea Agnelli, to finish top four, do ‘well’ in the Europa League and win the Coppa Italia.
Isaac Newton’s law of universal gravitation seems to work to the extreme on Amauri, who spends more time lying on the pitch.
Juventus were already eliminated...
Gianni Agnelli, has it already been 8 years?
It’s been 8 years since Gianni Agnelli passed away, whose greatest gift to everyone at Juventus, including us the supporters, was lo Stile Juve.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GncrXwXyxWk
Del Piero and Nedved scoring ‘Juve style’ goals, dedicated to our president.
Ci manchi ancora, l’Avvocato!
Why Juve need the Coppa Italia
In the last decade, the Coppa Italia has perhaps been worth just as much as a plastic cup to Juventus. The bianconeri, along with other bigger sides, preferred to rest their star players in the competition. It has more or less been an opportunity to give to those who haven’t enjoyed much playing time, possibly even testing some youngsters from the primavera squad. It wasn’t just the...
