In June, national soccer team coach Jürgen Klinsmann criticized the Korean soccer culture, saying that players who played in the U-20 World Cup were not getting opportunities to play in the K League. However, despite Klinsmann's comments, the players are gaining experience and growing in the K League.

"If 18-year-old Lee Kang-in was in the K League, would he have been able to play," Klinsmann said at a press conference at the Conrad Hotel in Yeouido on March 13, ahead of the second round of qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup North and Central America in Asia. "It was possible because he was in Spain (instead of Korea)," he said.

"He wouldn't have been able to play if he was in Korea," he said, adding, "It's only because he's in Spain (instead of Korea) that Valencia and Mallorca recognize that he's a good player." He went on to say that K League clubs lack the ability to spot talented players like Lee Kang-in.

He also pointed out that the K League tends to favor older players over younger ones. "Foreign countries are different, and (German club) Dortmund always produces young players, such as Bellingham and Pulisic, and sells them to foreign countries for a lot of money," he said, taking a swipe at K League clubs.

He even mentioned Jo Jin-ho, a former Jeonbuk Hyundai youth team prospect who now plays in the European Serbian League. "He plays in the Serbian first team, but he wouldn't have been able to play in the K League," he said, "Young players should have the opportunity to play and shine."

He also mentioned that he hasn't seen many players from the U-20 World Cup in the Korean League. "Where are the top four players in the U-20 tournament and where are they playing?" he asked, "They should all be playing in the K League. Personally, I think it takes a long time for young players to play in Korea."

While Klinsmann has some valid points about the K League, many of them are untrue.

In the case of Jo Jin-ho, the former Jeonbuk youth team player, he wasn't sent to Europe because he couldn't get a chance to play in the K League.

He was pampered and nurtured by the prestigious Jeonbuk Hyundai. He was a key player for Jeonbuk's U-15 team, Geumsanjung, and U-18 team, Yeongsang-go, and led Yeongsang-go to the National High School Soccer League Wangjungwang in 2021. Jeonbuk sent him to affiliate club Olympique Lyonnais twice to help him grow. In other words, Jo Jin-ho made it to European soccer on his own terms.

He wasn't the only K League club to send prospects to Europe. Hong Yun-sang (Pohang Steelers), Lee Dong-kyung (Ulsan Hyundai), Chun Sung-hoon (Incheon United), and Hwang Jae-hwan (Ulsan Hyundai) all played professional soccer in Germany before returning to the K League.

It was Klinsmann's home country of Germany that turned away the young Korean players who took up the challenge. German clubs didn't give the young Korean players enough playing time, and they ended up returning home without a place.

It was the K League that gave them a second chance. Hong Yun-sang, Lee Dong-kyung, Chun Sung-hoon, and others have returned to Korea this year and are blossoming in their original teams. Klinsmann's statement that the K League doesn't give young prospects a chance is not supported by the facts.

Klinsmann's statement that U-20 World Cup players are not playing in the K League is also not true.

Captain Lee Seung-won (Gangwon FC), who won the Bronze Ball with three goals and four assists, has played 11 games for Gangwon since the U20 World Cup, gaining real-world experience.

Striker Park Seung-ho (Incheon), who returned home from the tournament with an injury, has played five games and has shown his pace in attack. Teammate Park Hyun-bin has also seen action in three matches.

Defender Park Chang-woo (Jeonbuk) has made 11 substitute appearances for the prestigious Jeonbuk since the tournament, gaining experience and expanding his role.

In the second division, the U-20 World Cup alumni are also in action.

Lee Young-joon (Gimcheon Sangmu), who started all seven games as a frontline striker, has three goals and two assists in nine appearances since the tournament. Since October, he has blossomed as a goal-scorer, scoring in crucial games at the end of the season when promotion to the top flight was on the line.

Midfielder Kang Sang-yoon (Busan I-Park), who is often referred to as the next Park Ji-sung due to his prolific play in the midfield, has played like salt in 14 games since being loaned to Busan in the second division from Jeonbuk Hyundai in the first division, and Busan is on the verge of promotion to the first division.

Defender Lee Chan-wook (Gyeongnam FC) scored one goal in five post-tournament appearances. Goalkeepers Moon Hyun-ho (Chungnam Asan) and Kim Jun-hong (Gimcheon) have also proven valuable to their teams, playing 13 and seven games respectively.

Despite Klinsmann's comments, the U-20 World Cup players have been able to compete and make their mark in the K League.

It's also important to note that Klinsmann used the press conference to make the case that all of these players should play regularly in the first team. This gives us an idea of how he views the K League. The U-20 World Cup is a stage for promising young players who have not yet perfected their game. However, the fact that these players should play in the main team just because they played in the U-20 World Cup shows that Klinsmann's evaluation and expectations of the K League are lower than expected.

It's even worse if it reflects a kind of orientalism (a Western distortion and bias toward the East) that age is more important than skill in the K League. If we take Klinsmann's comments at face value, the K League would be a league dominated by the irrationality of keeping a great player like Lee Kang-in on the bench because of his age.

In addition, Klinsmann has been criticized for only watching European league players in person and only looking at some European players such as Son Heung-min, Kim Min-jae, and Lee Kang-in. His refusal to stay in Korea and his attitude of delegating K League matches to coach Chaduri has also been criticized since his appointment.

The head coach of the national soccer team, who leads not only the A team but also Korean soccer in general, seems to have added fuel to the fire by making statements that are not in line with the facts and are one-sided. 19가이드03