K League to commemorate legends of the Korean game in new Hall of Fame

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K League to commemorate legends of the Korean game in new Hall of Fame

The K League Hall of Fame poster shared on the K League's official Instagram account on Friday. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

The K League Hall of Fame poster shared on the K League's official Instagram account on Friday. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

 
The K League is celebrating the start of its 40th season with the introduction of a league Hall of Fame to recognize the achievements of legendary figures in Korean football. The first round of Hall of Fame inductees will be announced next month.
 
The league announced last Thursday that inductees into the Hall of Fame will fall into one of three categories: Stars, Leaders and Honors. The first two categories cover players and managers, with the Honors category left for people who have contributed to the sport off the pitch.
 
To mark the launch of the Hall of Fame, the K League announced a shortlist of 60 notable retired players that either made 300 league appearances, scored 100 goals, recorded 100 clean sheets or took either the league's top scorer, top assists, MVP or Best XI titles.
 
The 60 shortlisted players were divided into four groups based on their age and the period they played in the league. One player from each generation will be inducted into the Hall of Fame next month in the Stars category, alongside one person each in the Leaders and Honors categories. 
 
The final decision will be based on votes from fans, media, clubs and a selection committee, with each element accounting for 25 percent of the vote. The fan vote will run from March 1 to March 10 on the K League website. 
 

The most notable name in the first generation category is Choi Kang-hee, who is known for his successful managerial career with Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, where he won the league six times. 
 
Choi Kang-hee [JOONGANG ILBO]

Choi Kang-hee [JOONGANG ILBO]

 
Choi was also a legendary fullback when he played in the K League. He played for the Pohang Steelers from the league’s foundation in 1983 and finished his career at Ulsan Hyundai in 1992, during which he won a place in the league’s Best XI four times: 1985, 1986, 1988 and 1991.  
 
The 14 other candidates from the first generation are Kang Deuk-soo, Kim Yong-se, Park Kyung-hoon, Park Sung-hwa, Park Yoon-ki, Baek Jong-chul, Lee Tae-ho, Chung Yong-hwan, Chung Hae-won, Cho Keung-yeon, Cho Min-kook, Cho Byung-deuk, Choi Soon-ho and Ham Hyun-gi, who were all big figures in K League football in the 1980s.  
 
Over in the second generation, there is a familiar name even to modern K League fans: Hong Myung-bo, the incumbent manager of Ulsan Hyundai. Hong was one of the best players during the 1990s, having won the MVP award once and a place in the Best XI five times with the Steelers.  
 
Hong Myung-bo poses for a photo in a K League game in his Pohang Steelers jersey in 1997. [JOONGANG ILBO]

Hong Myung-bo poses for a photo in a K League game in his Pohang Steelers jersey in 1997. [JOONGANG ILBO]

 
There is also a unique name in the second generation: Shin Eui-son — which translates to "hand of God" in Korean. Shin, also known as Valeri Sarychev, is a naturalized Korean from Tajikistan and is regarded as one of the greatest K League goalkeepers of all time.  
 
Shin Eui-son [JOONGANG ILBO]

Shin Eui-son [JOONGANG ILBO]

 
Shin played for Seongnam FC and FC Seoul, where he made 320 K League appearances from 1992 to 2004, won the best goalkeeper award twice and was nominated for the Best XI five times. He kept 114 clean sheets in the league alone.
 
The 13 other members in the second generation are Ko Jeong-woon, Kim Bong-gil, Kim Joo-sung, Kim Pan-keun, Kim Hyun-seok, Rade Bogdanovic, Park Tae-ha, Shin Hong-gi, Yoon Sang-chul, Lee Sang-yoon, Lee Heung-sil, Ha Seok-ju and Hwang Bo-kwan. 
 
The third generation also has a big former goalkeeper name that a lot of Korean football fans know: Kim Byung-ji, who made the most appearances in the league, with 706, and kept the most clean sheets, at 229.  
 
Kim Byung-ji, then Gyeongnam FC goalkeeper, in action during a K League game against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, North Jeolla on Nov. 1, 2009. [JOONGANG ILBO]

Kim Byung-ji, then Gyeongnam FC goalkeeper, in action during a K League game against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, North Jeolla on Nov. 1, 2009. [JOONGANG ILBO]

 
Lee Woon-jae, another goalkeeper who was part of the 2002 World Cup semifinalist squad, also joins Kim Byung-ji in the third generation since he managed 140 clean sheets in 410 league games. 
 
The remaining third generation candidates are Ko Jong-soo, Kim Do-hoon, Roh Sang-rae, Denis Laktionov, Mato Neretljak, Sasa Drakulic, Seo Jung-won, Shin Tae-yong, Adilson dos Santos, Ahn Jung-hwan, Woo Sung-yong, Yoo Sang-chul and Choi Yong-soo.  
 
The fourth generation has more familiar names to younger Korean football fans, with the most notable one being Lee Dong-gook, who is the all-time top scorer in the league with 176 goals in 433 games. He spent 11 years in Jeonbuk and retired there in 2020.  
 
Lee Dong-gook, then a Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors player, celebrates after scoring a goal in a K League game against Daegu FC at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, North Jeolla on July 10, 2010. [JOONGANG ILBO]

Lee Dong-gook, then a Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors player, celebrates after scoring a goal in a K League game against Daegu FC at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, North Jeolla on July 10, 2010. [JOONGANG ILBO]

 
The fourth generation squad includes three 2002 World Cup squad members: Kim Nam-il, Lee Chun-soo, and Choi Tae-uk, alongside Kwak Tae-hwi, Kim Do-heon, Kim Yong-dae, Kim Eun-jung, Mauricio Molina, Eninho, Jung Jo-gook, Choi Hyo-jin, Ha Dae-sung, Hwang Jin-sung.  
 
After the announcement of the first inductees of the Hall of Fame in March, the K League will celebrate their achievements through on-site events, commemorative videos and an induction ceremony.  

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]
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