The current talk of the football world is the altercation between Son Heung Min and Lee Kang In.
Lee Kang In (left) Son Heung Min (right) | Yonhap News Agency
Both players competed as part of the South Korean national team in the 2024 Asian Cup when a scuffle broke out during a team dinner. Son reportedly wanted the player to get an early rest, and a fight broke out, during which Son Heung Min’s fingers were injured.
Lee Kang In and others were about to leave for table tennis Son Heung Min called them out. When Lee talked back, Son grabbed him by the collar, injuring his finger in the process. After the situation calmed down, senior players lectured Lee on maintaining respect for seniority, to which Lee retorted ‘I’ll quit then.’
— National team insider
Lee Kang In would apologize, though the damage was already done — the South Korean team lost the match against Jordan, with many pointing to Lee’s behavior during the game as causing the loss.
| Chosun Ilbo
However, following everything that occurred, some netizens believe the drama between the two players was fabricated or exaggerated at the least.
One X user pointed out some alleged exaggerations in the story of the fight, first pointing out that the disagreement was not between only Lee Kang In and Son Heung Min initially, but rather the young players vs. the veteran ones.
기레기들 아오
손흥민 이강인 부딪힘 상황 정리
<서호정 기자가 확인한 국가대표팀 선수단 불화 내용 >
처음엔 손흥민 vs 이강인 구도가 아니었음
손흥민이 포함된 베테랑 선수들 vs 이강인이 포함된 젊은 선수들 구도였음
갈등이 생긴 계기는 의사소통에서 혼선이 생기면서 나온 오해에서 비롯
— 상산 조자룡 (@Ganukeum) February 14, 2024
“It was not a Son Heung Min vs Lee Kang In thing in the beginning. It was more like the veteran players including Son Heung Min vs the young players including Lee Kang In. The reason that discord arose was due to the confusion that arose amidst poor communication, and a misunderstanding came about.
— X OP
They continued saying that the manner of the scuffle made it impossible to know who caused Son’s injury and that it was caused by a “mutual misunderstanding” the soccer association helped sort things out.
| @Ganukeum/X
It’s not true that Son Heung Min requested Lee Kang In to be removed. Actually, the other veteran players brought it up but Song Heung Min was the one who stopped it, and it wasn’t told to the coach in the end. And the rumors that are spreading now about who and who is on who’s side (who and who went to play table tennis with Lee Kang In, etc) are all also different from what I know. Fists flying and collar grabbings are all untrue. During the discord and in the process of conversing, Song Heung Min was injured. They said that no one knew who caused it, probably because everyone was gathered around so the witnesses couldn’t tell either. because the first motivation for the matter was a mutual misunderstanding, the soccer association helped to sort it out.
— X OP
Though it is impossible to know, there is a lot of confusion over the fight, and reports have varied, though most have stated that Kang threw a punch.
말다툼이 격해지는 과정에서 손흥민의 손가락이
옷에 껴서 부상을 당한 것으로 파악된다고 밝혔다.
라고 하더니 이젠 멱살잡이에 주먹질로 바뀌어 있고
이강인 주먹질은 손흥민이 피했고 무슨 ‘이강인파’ 이러면서 조폭을 만들어놓음.
축구협회 관계자 아저씨들 지금 뭐하시는거에여??? pic.twitter.com/bUCR9lfNhl
— 손흥민이 행축하는세상 ᷤ ⷪ ᷡ⁷ (@son7_GOAT) February 14, 2024
[First] It was revealed that when the argument intensified, Son Heung Min’s finger was caught in his clothes, and he sustained an injury.
Now, it has turned into a brawl with neck-grabbing and punches with Son Heung Min dodging a punch from Lee Kang In. Why are they turning Lee Kang In into a gangster by saying “Lee Kang In Faction”?
What are the Korean Football Association officials doing?
— X OP
This belief is aided by Son and Lee’s behavior toward each other before the altercation. It is said that Son somewhat “babied” the other player due to their age differences, with Son reportedly urging the Tottenham team to sign the other player in 2023.
Lee Kang In reportedly called Son “the best player in Korean history” during the 2022 FIFA World Cup, saying he learned much from watching him.
[Video could not be displayed]
It is also believed that the players were being used as scapegoats to protect not only the team’s coach Jurgen Klinsmann but also the Korean Football Association’s president, Chung Mong Gyu. There have been calls for both to be sacked due to poor performance.
손흥민, 이강인 책임지고 국대 은퇴하자.
클린스만 체제에서 몸 갈아쓰게 하고,
책임회피를 위해 선수를 희생양으로 쓰고 보호할 생각도 안하는 국대를 뭐하러 하나?
잠정 은퇴 선언하고, 축협 회장 바뀌고 감독 바뀌면 그 때 다시 돌아오길.
이게 뭔 개같은 정치질이야. https://t.co/SPo6K70d2y
— 방랑자 (@Rewrite_News) February 14, 2024
Son Heung Min, Lee Kang In, take responsibility and just retire from the national team. Why would you be a national player when all they do is make you sacrifice your body under Klinnsman’s system, while they sacrifice their players to avoid responsibility and don’t even think of protecting the players? Hope you guys just announce your retirement, then come back only after they change the KFA chairperson and coach. What f*cked up politic play is this.
— X OP
With the pair’s past interactions considered, it is easy to see why netizens may come to a different conclusion about the ongoing drama.
