"Let me show you!" Director Kim Ki-dong 'Honjat'→Anger Explodes, FC Seoul Lingard'"A Moment to Wake Up"

Oct 17, 2024

photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association

"That's when I got a fever. 'I'll have to show it to you. I should show you how hard I workI thought "

The behind-the-scenes story of 'Superstar' Lingard (FC Seoul) became a true 'Seoul man' was revealed. Lingard, a former England international, joined Seoul ahead of this season. He made 21 league appearances, scoring five goals and one assist. He is leading the team as captain in place of Ki Sung-yueng, who left due to injury. Lingard played on and off the ground, helping Seoul advance to the Final A for the first time in five years. In fact, there were ups and downs at the beginning of the season. FC Seoul coach Kim Ki-dong said, `A player who does not play for a few minutes does not even fight. I think he's not a player if he doesn't play more than a player who plays for 90 minutes. If you think you're going to play soccer with 'name value', shouldn't you take retired players. I talk in a meeting once a day, and (Lingard) says 'Clean up". It doesn't come out as an action, so it's something that shouldn't be done." But coincidentally, on that day, Lingard's mindset changed 180 degrees.

Lingard attended the official press conference for the final round of 'Hana Bank K League 1 2024' held at Nuri Dream Square in Seoul on the 16th. In a press conference before the official event, he said "I didn't think it would be this hard at the beginning of the season. I think it was unconscious that it was okay to do a little 'take it easy' The director once said it officially badly. That's when I got a fever. 'I'll have to show it to you. I should show you how hard I workI thought ' It was an opportunity for me to come to my senses myself. I prepared hard with the intention of not deceiving myself. I think I tried to do my best in every training session. I think I got better naturally," he said with a smile.

photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association

Lingard kept his promise to himself. Overcoming the bad news of injury, he has been reborn as the team's ace and mental support. Coach Kim put his thumb up at Lingard. Director Kim said "Didn't I say 'Seolleongtang?" He's running around. Oh, I got a lot of rebukes from the fans for saying that. What does a coach say to a player who doesn't even get 'quick'. If I talk to Lingard now, he said he was in 100% condition two months ago and four months ago. Now that I think about it, it wasn't. I mean, I was right. I didn't think a player who hasn't played in a year and a half because he hasn't been able to find a team would get better in a short period of time. I thought it would get better after the first half. I got better and had surgery. There was a hiatus. It's only coming up now. He says he likes it, but I think it's about 80%. I'll show you running 12km before the end of the year. Please look forward to it. I don't think it's important to run a lot. High intensity, sprint should also be seen. Still, Lingard has a lot of high-intensity running. If Lingard runs more than 12km at high intensity, it should be considered that he runs a lot. The player who played the most in the past was Kim Seung-dae. Running more than 12km, he had 26 sprints. This is nonsense. If the sprint goes in like that, even if you ran 12km, you actually jumped more than 13km. Lingard is also in the style of running a lot."

photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association

Director Kim released another episode about Lingard. Coach Kim said "In fact, Lingard was going to England after the match against Gwangju FC on the 6th." It was my daughter's birthday after going to school on the 12th. It was to fly on the 10th and have a birthday party. It's tight. That's why he said 'I'm going on the 7th after the game on the 6th, why are you taking a rest?' He said he would train and go. I actually come out and train every day. But it was tight where my hamstring hurt. 'It's tight because I sat in Gwangju for two hours, but I shouldn't go to England. I'll let him play for 45 minutes against Gangwon-do." Lingard said he could run. So 'That's your idea. I won't let you run. Then, on that day, I canceled my flight ticket and treated it. I rehabilitated and prepared for the game. All the players thought Lingard was going to England. The players were also puzzled. Players also feel a lot. Ilyuchenko has become a Korean kid, and Lingard and two of them lead the team a lot. With Ki Sung-yueng out now, he is a landowner. The two of you are leading well," he smiled.

Lingard was "It was my daughter's birthday. I've been preparing for a party for a long time. I thought I should go without fail. Going into the final round was important, so I didn't intend to go for a long time. I planned to go to Korea the day before my birthday and have a birthday party and come back to Korea in the evening. But I felt my muscles were tight in training. I had to take a 14-hour flight, and I was worried that I could be damaged if I went to (Britain) where the time difference is different. On the same day, I told the director 'It'd be better not to go' My daughter was very upset. While talking on the phone, he said that his father was in this situation and that he would not be able to go because it was an important part. Thankfully, my daughter understood me well, so I think I moved on well."

photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association

Perfectly adapted to the K League, Lingard now runs higher. On this day, he received a love call from the coaches of five clubs except for Kim. Lingard said "All five teams sitting here are cool. I respect you. But I want to tell you that in the end, we will win. I want to win in Seoul."

Lingard "I thought the coach was a little hard at the beginning of the season. The relationship seems to have naturally improved as there was a lot of conversation and comfort. I think he always showed good performance under the director who talked a lot one-on-one in the UK. I think the director helped me a lot," he said, expressing confidence.

epi17@sportschosun.com

"Let me show you!" Director Kim Ki-dong 'Honjat'→Anger Explodes, FC Seoul Lingard'"A Moment to Wake Up"

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