The Official 2012 Korea NT Thread [R]

Don't think his wife is Korean. I remember seeing her pic being plastered all over naver.com just a few weeks ago. And what if he was married to a Korean? Nice logic you got going there Korea

correct for some reason i thought she was korean

Found the pic

That chicks hot.

If there wasn't somebody paying his bills, I'm guessing he wouldn't spend a minute in Korea. If we had somebody like that Japanese fellow who was born and raised but not ethnically correct, I'm 100% for them. Radoncic, I at least see an argument because he appears to want to live and be korean regardless of football.

EDIT I was thinking of the white dude but tadanari lee sure.

But Eninho is fulfilling no such obligations, while Radoncic is. Why should Eninho get special treatment? Esp when he will be taking away a spot from one of our youngsters. We need help in the FB and CB positions. Not another CAM/playmaker.

And the whole argument for his versatility falls on deaf ears when we already have similar players who can play the left, right, no. 10 and deliver great set pieces.

I would have absolutely no problem with a mixed kid or even a kid with no Korean background who grew up in Korea playing for the KNT. I'd welcome it with open arms and cheer the dude on like any other player.

Radoncic and Eninho on the other hand are the purest definitions of a merc. They're not good enough to play for Serbia or Brazil respectively so they want another way into international football. Anyone remember the 1998 World Cup qualifier in Tokyo? Wagner Lopes was playing for Japan and we were all like: "Those Japanese, naturalizing Brazilians to win."

Let's be realistic, all this "oh he loves the country blahblahblah" talk is ridiculous. They're getting their bills paid and they're living the high life as a footballer. Who wouldn't love that life?

Hell, I'll just ask this question.

How is this ANY different than what Qatar does?

Radoncic would be earning his citizenship through the same procedures that any other person desiring of becoming Korean would go through. Five years of stay under stable source of income, along with clean records, and a passing grade in the citizenship examination. Once he's become a Korean citizen, it would be racist not to call him up; it's not like he's doing bad in Suwon. And at the risk of sounding like a jerk, a Canadian citizen like you only get a little say in determining who's 'Korean' and who is not. Sorry, but it's just the truth.

Some parts of it can be a bit stricter [ie. number of years stay], but I think the Korean government has reasonable standards on determining who deserves a chance at writing the citizenship examination. The examination has been known to be very tricky--99% of us here, including me, would fail should we be tested without studying--and I'd happily welcome either Radoncic or Eninho as one of my own, a Korean citizen, if they had passed it.

Btw, Radoncic may not be good enough for the Serbian national team, but he's good enough for Montenegro's and he's been called up twice by two different managers; I believe he would a relevant member if he's actually wanted to play for Montenegro. And unlike Dejan, who plays for Montenegro despite being a Serbian, Dzenan is actually more Montenegrin than he is Serbian.

Why on earth would it be racist? No one's entitled to anything. If he passes the citizenship test, is the KFA supposed to get down and lick his balls? No, if he's performing well then they'll give him a call-up, if he's performing badly then they won't. Simple.

So do we classify someone as Korean by citizenship or ethnic background? That's funny, since a lot of people on this forum were pissed when Lee Tadanari decided to play for Japan. Why? He's freaking 4th generation. His family has stayed in Japan for more than a 100 years. Yet people were still pissed he decided to represent the JNT and called into question his character and whatnot. This is so disgustingly hypocritical on a number of levels. Someone like Lee Tadanari is scorned because he chose to play for the country of his birth yet someone like Eninho/Radoncic is welcomed with open arms.

"Oh Eninho/Radoncic is Korean! He's stayed here 5 years and passed the citizenship test! He's as Korean as can be!"

"Lee Tadanari has scored the winner for Japan."

"Oh fcuk that traitor! Ban-jokkbari!"

Double standards much?

Also, people in Korea classify people all the time. Every time some successful gyopo makes it big the Korean media/population goes apeshit. Anyone remember the Hines Ward hysteria? That bordered on genuine mental retardation.

they would be korean nationals not korean ethnically. and your right they should be called up on merit and not for political and other motives.

lee tadanari is a different situation entirely. and i think the fact he is ethnic korean and has a korean name and the fact that his parents wanted him to represent korea was a reason for people saying those things. that coupled with the fact he wont stop whining about how the other boys were not nice to him. there was no way he was going to supplant PJY on that team anyways.

Who cares if he's ethnic Korean with a Korean name to boot? Born and raised in Japan. He's Japanese end of story. Oh darn. He's not right? Because we all know deep down he'll always be Korean (even if he hates it), just like we all know how Eninho will always be Brazilian and Radoncic will always be Montenegrin.

He's getting more minutes at his club (Southampton are in the EPL next year) than PCY. Plus he's actually won something of significance. Oh, younger too.

Using the logic of those in favour of Eninho/Radoncic, one should have no problem if Baek Seung Ho turns out to be the next La Masia superstar and decides to play for Spain.

Anyways, I've always though there was something deeper going on here with this issue. I'm positive one of these mercs will wear the KNT shirt, and the KFA and other organizations will go: "SEE! Look how accepting we are! We're so DYNAMIC! DYNAMIC KOREA!" Meanwhile, those poor mail order brides and their children on the countryside will continue to suffer discrimination and abuse, but that's okay since the KNT has shown the world that they're the seoul of Asia (guffaw) by being so incredibly forward-thinking.

For me:

Radoncic - welcomed to join the KNT. Wants to become a Korean citizen. Turned down opportunities from another NT to possibly represent the KNT. Not a mercenary.

Eninho - Mercenary. Superfluous. Has no interest in Korean culture or national representation. Doing this to go to the WC.

Lee Tandanari - had opportunities to represent the KNT. Wasn't good enough. Nowhere should he ever be uttered in the same breadth as PJY. You're going off on a tangent discussing him. Lots of projection going on to boot.

Right on bro. Im just speaking in general terms. Eninho can eat a bag of dicks for all I care. You just can't bypass the obligations. That just isn't right.

I feel more Korean, although I was born and bred in the States. Just like how Tadanari can still consider himself Korean by his roots. Korean by ethnicity and nationality (what's on paper) elsewhere; Most of us can relate to Tadanari.

he was born in japan with korean citizenship. you do know zainichi arent given citizenship right even when born in japan?

in 2004 he was not as good as PJY.

Yes I am aware. But you and I both know that deep down our definition of who's "Korean" is by one's ethnic background, even though no-one wants to admit it on the fear of being labelled "racist."

I'm talking about now not then.

Can we stop discussing a Japanese NT player who was born and held a Korean citizenship but threw it away to play for his beloved Emperor and country?

Well he was born there at least.

No-one's answered the question: How is it any different than Qatar?

It's just a difference of degree IMO. Qatar naturalizes quicker, we do it slower.

1. The distance between Seoul and Osaka is about the same as the distance from Toronto to NYC. Even Canadians have enough pride to not represent the US in hockey just for a counterpoint.
2. He was born with a Korean citizenship and had no military obligations
3. His ancestors were slave workers to the Japanese empire

He is NOT you. Nor is his circumstances analogous to yours.

That's what I exactly meant. Radoncic isn't performing poorly so not calling him up would mean race is involved.

As for Lee Chungsung, the uproar over him only existed because he chose Japan. If he was a Korean American, or a Korean Kenyan for that matter, that chose to be a representative of some other nation besides Korea, nobody would care. Very few in Korea, if any at all, go around saying 'Lee should have played for Korea instead' because we all know he's not good enough and we know if he was good enough for both, he would have chosen Korea; the question mark that surrounds him is more like 'why did he have to be so desperate that he's now playing for Japan?' Thus, the matter has absolutely nothing to do with citizenship, and is a pride issue developed from history and politics--aka an ethnic issue.

I guess you've never heard of Brett Hull.



I don't dispute any of your points but the main point is he was born there and that should be good enough to make anyone who criticizes him to zip it up. He has more right and cause to play for Japan than Eninho/Radoncic will ever have to play for the KNT.

Oh but I thought we were above ethnic issues? Clearly not. It matters. You can't just say ohhh, ethnicity shouldn't matter in Randoncic's case but goddamnit it matters in Tadanari's case.

And no-one willing to explain how it differs from what Qatar has been doing?

You're not going change your opinion as to point 1. So I'm not going to bother, b/c I frankly just don't care about a JNT player.

As for point 2, Qatar goes around recruiting the best youth, throwing cars, villas and cash at them to represent their NT before the players can be capped w/ their respective countries.

The case of Enhinho is an embarrassment. But Radoncic (if selected) would become a KNT member out of merit. And the KFA would not be recruiting him w/ money like Qatar. It's a clear distinction.

Well I'm sure Qatar is naturalizing players out of merit as well. Not like they go out of their way to choose the worst players, they want the best.

So the KFA is just fiscally responsible in comparison to Qatar. At the end of the day both teams are still going to be naturalizing foreign players no? Who cares if one does it by so called "nobler" means then the other? It's the same thing.

Also, Eninho/Radoncic know that if they play for the KNT, $$$ will invariably follow. Fame and fortune come with being an international.

What in the blue hell are you talking about? Of course ethnicity matter in issues surrounding ethnicity. People's pride were hurt from Tadanari Lee's decision to play for a country that had once tried to remove Korea from the world's map [and is still trying]. In which part are you trying to suggest that citizenship is getting involved in this?

It's different because Qatar is giving away citizenship to players who otherwise have no desire to be a Qatari; guys who have been a national team member for over a decade that speak no Arabic or have any regards to the Qatari culture. Also, in Qatar, you don't get a chance to be a Qatari citizen just from living there for a couple of years. In fact, it's impossible to become a citizen without being born one. Yet, they are bending the rules just for the simple sake of having a better football team.

The main difference of course is that Radoncic is earning himself his Korean citizenship, and not being thrown one just because he's an excelling sportsman. In order to earn the right to be a Korean citizen, he actually has to make sacrifices, such as learning the Korean language, learning the required amount of Korean history that he will be tested on during the citizenship examination, and eventually giving up his Montenegrin passport. If you can't see what's different, it's because you aren't trying hard enough, so try harder.