Jeonbuk's Mad Green Boys supporters club call on manager to resign

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors' official supporters group Mad Green Boys (M.G.B) on Monday called for the resignation of the team’s manager Kim Sang-sik despite being just four games into the 2023 K League season.

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors manager Kim Sang-sik watches a K League game between his team and Ulsan Hyundai at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan on Feb. 25. [YONHAP]

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors' official supporters group Mad Green Boys (M.G.B) on Monday called for the resignation of the team’s manager Kim Sang-sik despite being just four games into the 2023 K League season.

“We demand the resignation of manager Kim Sang-sik,” the group said in an image shared on its official Facebook page on Monday.

A post shared on Mad Green Boys' official Facebook page on Monday with a statement demanding Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors' manager Kim Sang-sik's resignation. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

“Kim threw away the players that made the club’s history in the name of rebuilding the team over three years," M.G.B said in a statement. "The old Jeonbuk before Kim took charge is no longer existent and he is ignoring the fans’ demand to maintain the fame of the old days, while he repeatedly asks us to wait like a parrot.

"How much longer do we need to trust you and wait for you? We, M.G.B, demand Kim Sang-sik’s resignation. We will fight until the end and further implement all the available means. We will fight until we fulfill our only goal.”

A number of comments on the post also echoed the statement, with some also calling for Choi Kang-hee, the former Jeonbuk manager who won the K League six times with the team, to be reinstated.

M.G.B’s call for Kim’s resignation comes after Jeonbuk have struggled in the early days of the season recording just one win, one draw and two losses so far to sit in eighth place on the 12-team table. The team finished last season in second place.

Kim did make some changes to his squad ahead of the 2023 K League season. He signed Lee Dong-jun from Bundesliga club Hertha BSC, Jeong Tae-wook and a number of other players.

Those new signings led to the departure of veteran players like Kim Bo-kyung and Lee Seung-gi.

Founded in 1999, Mad Green Boys are the official Jeonbuk fan club and one of the largest supporting groups in the K League. Members of the group dress in bright green, the club's official color.

Jeonbuk will play their fifth league game after the international break on April 1 against the fourth-place Pohang Steelers.

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