Media outlets have reported a serious discord within the Korean national soccer team.

According to The Sun's report, the members of the South Korean soccer team had a serious conflict, dividing the team into two sides. The news media outlet reported that an incident occurred on the evening of February 5, which made the friction between two key players worse.

On February 5, the South Korean soccer team had a dinner ahead of the semifinal against Jordan. The dinner was meant to further unify the team and assert that they were one team the evening before the match.

However, on that day, some of the younger players in the team, including Lee Kang In, Seol Young Woo, and Jung Woo Young, left the dinner early and instead went to play table tennis.

Feeling that their actions were not right, captain Song Heung Min tried to stop the members from leaving. However, they did not listen. According to reports, Son Heung Min became enraged and allegedly grabbed Lee Kang In's collar, and Lee Kang In responded by allegedly punching Son Heung Min.

Amidst the struggle, Son Heung Min is said to have dislocated his finger. Heavy favorite South Korea shockingly lost to Jordan in the Asian Cup semi-finals 2-0.

A football association official said, "We received reports of players having a dispute during the tournament." He explained, "There was friction between Son Heung Min and some young players as they tried to go play table tennis, and Son Heung Min injured his finger in the process."

It was reported that senior players on the team approached coach Jürgen Klinsmann, asking to exclude Lee Kang In from the match against Jordan. However, Coach Klinsmann did not exclude Lee Kang In.

It is speculated that the conflict within the team extends beyond the one between Son Heung Min and Lee Kang In. There were witness testimonies that the South Korean team had been divided based on age, and the players were seen practicing separately in separate groups.

The younger players, such as Lee Kang In, Seol Young Woo, Jung Woo Young, Oh Hyun Gyu, and Kim Ji Soo, formed their group and passed the ball among themselves while the senior members, such as Son Heung Min, Kim Jin Soo, Kim Young Kwon, and Lee Jae Sung formed their own group. The players born in 1996 such as Hwan Hee Chan, Hwang In Bum, and Kim Min Jae were also seen practicing among themselves.

Not only that, but there seemed to be tension between players who play for overseas and domestic teams.

In one instance during pre-tournament training sessions, an overseas-based attacker showed dissatisfaction with a domestic defender's aggressive style of play. This frustration culminated in the attacker forcefully kicking the ball, an incident that was captured by reporters.

Regrettably, it appears that Coach Klinsmann has been unable to mediate such issues, both in the past year and during the current Asian Cup. Consequently, instead of presenting a united front, the national team entered the Asian Cup in a state of disarray. Despite Coach Klinsmann's past acclaim for his adeptness in managing players' psychological dynamics, it appears that even this skill has lost its efficacy.