Kim Nam-il (Korean: 김남일; Hanja: 金南一; born 14 March 1977) is a South Korean football manager and former player who played as defensive midfielder. He is the manager of K League 1 club Seongnam FC.

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Kim Nam-il

Kim with Tom Tomsk in 2010
Personal information
Full name	Kim Nam-il
Date of birth	(1977-03-14) 14 March 1977 (age 47)
Place of birth	Incheon, South Korea
Height	1.82 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in)
Position(s)	Defensive midfielder
Team information
Current team	Seongnam FC (manager)
College career
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1996–1999	Hanyang University
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2000–2004	Jeonnam Dragons	92	(7)
2003	→ Feyenoord (loan)	0	(0)
2003	→ Excelsior (loan)	8	(0)
2005–2007	Suwon Samsung Bluewings	45	(0)
2008–2009	Vissel Kobe	54	(1)
2010–2011	Tom Tomsk	41	(0)
2012–2013	Incheon United	59	(0)
2014	Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors	20	(2)
2015	Kyoto Sanga	27	(1)
Total		346	(11)
International career
1996	South Korea U20	4	(1)
1999	South Korea U23	17	(1)
1998–2013	South Korea	98	(2)
Managerial career
2020–	Seongnam FC
Medal record Representing  South Korea Men's football AFC Youth Championship 1996 South Korea Team EAFF Championship 2008 China Team
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

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Kim Nam-il began playing football in third grade of elementary school. His decision to play football was initially met with opposition from his parents because of his impressive academic performance, but he continued his football career during his schooldays.^[1]

In the 1996 AFC Youth Championship, he played for South Korean under-20 team, and scored his first international goal against Iran,^[2] He wasn't selected as a participant in the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship, but he was named in South Korean senior team for the 1998 Asian Games by the manager Huh Jung-moo. He made his senior international debut in the tournament.^[3]

Under Guus Hiddink, Kim began to play for the national team in earnest. Former unimpressive player in the K League, he was criticized early in his international career due to poor basic skills. However, in Hiddink's belief, he became an irreplaceable defensive midfielder who could block counterattacks of the opponent team beforehand. Nicknamed the "Vacuum cleaner", he showed strong stamina and relentless tussle.^[4] In the 2002 World Cup, he appeared all five games until the quarter-finals, but he injured his ankle during the quarter-final match against Spain.^[5] South Korea lost to Germany in the semi-finals after he quit the tournament.

The term "Kim Nam-il Syndrome" began to be coined by tabloids to describe Kim's superstardom status. During the 2002 World Cup, he gained an unusually large female fan base,^[6] led to sold-out matches and goodies, and caused a sudden increase in popularity of Jeonnam Dragons. Kim, a former unknown to the public, then became highly desirable by numerous endorsement companies that were eager to pay high amounts of money.^[7] Many TV programs had asked, or pressured at times for, Kim to appear, but he rejected their offers, and appeared only on interviews instead.^[8]

In January 2003, Kim joined an Eredivisie club Feyenoord on loan, and was subleased to the satellite club Excelsior to be tested for five months.^[9] However, he didn't make a strong impression.^[10]

In the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Kim didn't only contribute to South Korea's defense, but also attack with long-range passes.^[11][12] He also played in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, but he was blamed by some South Korean fans after conceding a penalty kick to Nigeria.^[13]

Kim started his career as a coach at Jiangsu Suning in 2016. He joined the South Korea's coaching staff for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. After the World Cup, he joined Jeonnam Dragons as a coach.

On 23 December 2019, Kim was appointed as the manager of Seongnam FC.^[14]

Kim is the youngest of the three brothers in his family, and is a close friend of Lee Kwan-woo and Lee Dong-gook.

Since 2006, there had been rumours about his relationship with anchorwoman Kim Bo-min eventually leading to the possibility of his marriage. The question was raised once again when a netizen posted a picture of a woman who he claimed was Kim Bo-min at Suwon World Cup Stadium. The woman was wearing a hat and a light green scarf that covered about half of her face.^[15] Both Kim Bo-min and Kim Nam-il neither confirmed nor denied the allegation. In an interview with a women's magazine, the footballer's parents have stated that they have heard from their son that they are romantically involved, but did not hear about marriage.^[16] In June 2007, the couple secretly became engaged and revealed that they had met three years ago. They are married and are having a son.^[17]