To be honest, the national football team's biggest enemy is netizens

People like those in various online communities, including the users here on Bulpen, are the problem.
I am speaking bluntly to an unspecified group of people, and I fully expect malicious commenters who feel targeted to chime in, but
I need to say what needs to be said objectively.
Watching this place for a few days, people are going on about the '96ers' this and that;
targeting specific individuals by comparing them and making personal attacks, saying they should retire if they don't want to play.
But looking at it, there hasn't even been an official announcement about anyone retiring; it's all just rumors,
talk spread by people who love gossip.
And how much do these kinds of people actually care about Korean football? On the contrary, they are a harmful hindrance.
It's exhausting, but when I talk about this, I can't help but compare us to other countries.
Korea is a highly homogeneous nation, which has its pros and cons, but culturally, it feels quite isolated.
Regarding these issues, I believe we need to look at things objectively in light of global standards.
Why is it that politics is constantly criticized by comparing it to Northern Europe, yet we fail to look at other social issues in the same way?
It has been discussed steadily for over a decade, but in Korea, celebrities are uniquely treated as 'public figures.'
That's why a famous actor committed suicide a few years ago, and a certain girl group (it hasn't been proven that malicious comments were the decisive cause, but it's true they suffered from them),
and recently, an actor who took his own life absurdly after being caught driving under the influence..
Personal guilt, mental health issues, social condemnation—
individual personality traits play a part, but the biggest reason
is actually because all of this is due to Korea's unique 'culture.'
Individuals cannot help but be subordinate to the environment and systems they grow up in.
As everyone likely knows, things that wouldn't even qualify as a minor incident abroad—especially in Hollywood—
cause celebrities to suffer, agonize, and even take their own lives.
The irony is that these standards are applied only to Koreans.
It's the same infidelity, but Lee Byung-hun becomes a villain, while Tom Cruise did something even worse around the same time, yet when he visits Korea, the airport is in an absolute frenzy with crowds.
Usually, people of different races and ethnicities tend to protect one another.
(This tendency is an undeniable fact, especially regarding celebrities. For example, the Nigerian singer who featured with Shakira during this World Cup committed a serious crime in his home country, but most Black people covered up his mistakes and left comments expressing pride in him. It's the same for White people and Muslims. But uniquely in East Asia, and specifically...)
We use much harsher standards against our fellow Koreans, pointing fingers and trying to destroy one another.
It's truly strange; it makes me wonder if this is a cultural issue or a deep-seated, innate temperament built up over thousands of years.
It's so bad that there's even a joke that you should be most careful around Koreans when abroad.
Anyway, I've decided to criticize the Korean temperament, but I sincerely hope that we Koreans can support one another and restore a sense of community.
Similarly, the current football issue can be viewed from this perspective.
Whether it's Mbappe or Messi, many football stars have had conflicts and noise, regardless of whether it was with their clubs or national teams.
In the absence of a leader, manager, or association that can firmly take control,
it is natural for friction to arise among players.
Is Kim Min-jae doing this to ruin the national team?
He is also running hard every moment with the desire to succeed.
And what about Lee Kang-in during that table tennis incident? Most people said he should strip off the national team jersey and leave.
Even at my workplace, regardless of gender, the 'kkondae' (old-fashioned/bossy) managers at the deputy manager level and above were heavily criticizing Lee Kang-in; I was the only one who spoke my mind.
I'm not saying his actions were right, but that they are things we could overlook once in a while.
But what about now? Especially during this World Cup?
"What would we have done without Lee Kang-in?" "We must build around Lee Kang-in, haha."
This is what Korean netizens are like.
This might just be another growing pain we have to go through once or twice.
No, we should view it that way for it to be progressive.
Is it right to write posts with eyes blazing, trying to kill off a few players?
I don't remember exactly if it was Seol Ki-hyeon or Ahn Jung-hwan,
but the members of the '02 generation appeared on YouTube and said
that they actually see this current situation as a positive sign, and that the team will become stronger in four years.
That is the mindset of someone who truly cares about Korean football.
The people here writing malicious comments, trying to destroy someone, or being sarcastic
are just selfish people who either don't care much about Korean football or have no sincere heart for it and just love scandal.
I believe that for our culture to improve, we must identify and exclude these kinds of people as much as possible.
There is a phrase that people who feel defensive or disagree with this love to use:
"If you don't like the temple, the monk must leave."
One day, that monk might be you.