Lee Kang-in has been nominated for the French Ligue 1 goal of the month for the 2023-24 season. He will compete with Kylian Mbappe, Usman Dembele and Vitinha to aim for his first goal of the month since Paris Saint-Germain.
Including his goal of the month in November, he caught the eye of France’s Ligue 1 player. “I’m a hidden superstar. Lee Kang-in already performed Mbappe in Paris Saint-Germain’s uniform sales rankings. Korean soccer fans are visiting Paris to see Lee Kang-in play in Paris Saint-Germain. Parisians may not know this well, but Lee Kang-in is becoming a true superstar of Paris Saint-Germain,” he said.
Lee Kang-in has been a shining talent since his youth days in Valencia. Korean soccer fans have been waiting for Lee’s professional performance, and he exploded his potential with the Golden Ball at the FIFA U-20 World Cup.
Since growing up in the Valencia youth team, he was the youngest Asian to play in the first team and the UEFA Champions League, but he was not guaranteed a satisfactory playing time. High-ranking Valencia officials evaluated the team’s future as a talent to be responsible for, but contrary to expectations, most of them were replaced and waiting on the bench. 에볼루션 바카라사이트
Lee Kang-in also needed time to play because Takefusa Kubo, who is the same age, and others were active on the professional stage earlier. This is the background of leaving Valencia, where he played since childhood, and joining Mallorca. He was jumbled in the first season of his transfer to Mallorca, but he completely compensated for his shortcomings from the second season and became the core of the team.
The same was true at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, which the world paid attention to. In the end, Paulo Bento caught the eye and was included in the final list of the World Cup, and he accumulated attack points by supplying a sharp left-footed pass from the side.
After returning to the World Cup, he received attention from big clubs in the winter. Although Mallorca’s no-transfer policy was briefly changed, he focused on the second half as a professional. He was one of the core players of Mallorca and became the first Korean to score double-digit attack points in the Primera Liga.
Mallorca could not catch Lee Kang-in, who was linked to Atletico Madrid, Manchester United, and Manchester City. Rumors of a transfer with the Premier League team were circulating, but Lee Kang-in’s final choice was Paris Saint-Germain.
After joining Paris Saint-Germain, Lee Kang-in said, “I can play various positions. He knows how to handle the ball comfortably. He is a midfielder who can play right and left wingers. He has great aspiration to win a trophy. I want to contribute to the team and contribute to the team’s victory. I am proud that I am the first Korean in Paris Saint-Germain’s history. I will play for Korea and Paris Saint-Germain. I will always do my best on the field. Paris Saint-Germain is one of the best teams in the world. The best players in the world have gathered. I can’t wait to have an adventure with Paris Saint-Germain. I want to help him win all the matches and win as many championships as possible. I have known this team since I was young,” he said, expressing confidence in competing to become a starting member of the team.
After recovering from a muscle injury in the pre-season, he started in the opening game of Ligue 1 in France. He played with world-class players and gained high ratings from European soccer statistics companies such as “Footmob,” demonstrating his presence as a man of the match (MOM).
He also started the second round but played like a wingback. He also had poor teamwork with midfielder Fabien Lewis. After just 51 minutes, he returned to the bench and was preparing for the next round when he heard the news of his injury. He also had a muscle injury, which prevented him from participating in the A-match in September.
He made all-out efforts to rest and adjust his physical condition. Since then, he has participated in the Hangzhou Asian Games. After winning the gold medal at the Asian Games, he has benefited from military service, and returned to Paris Saint-Germain by perfectly enhancing his sense of play in the A-match in October. During the A match in October, he led the Korean national team with fierce attack that even though Son Heung-min was absent.
He returned to Paris Saint-Germain and played in the UEFA Champions League. He was a starter in the previous league, but replaced him in the Champions League. As soon as he stepped on the ground, however, he displayed impressive presence. In connection with fullback Hakimi, he dominated the midfield from the side to the waist through one-two passes, and tried a killer pass that penetrated into his teammates by penetrating from the side. When Mbappe sought a chance on the left side, he provided a sharp pass.
He even scored his debut goal in the Champions League. The goal in the Champions League proved that Lee Kang-in’s physical condition came close to perfection. “It was a magical night in Paris. We will go together to achieve more. Way to go, Paris.”
His condition improved perfectly and he began to blend into Paris Saint-Germain. He increased his presence by playing as a starter in consecutive leagues. He raced by exchanging balls with key striker Kylian Mbappe, and accumulated one assist from Mbappe, becoming an option to attack Paris Saint-Germain.
Prior to the A-match in November, he had one goal and one assist, displaying remarkable performance. After returning to the Korean national team, the team had its second preliminary match in Asia for the FIFA World Cup North Korea, Central America, and China, displaying strong presence by scoring points in consecutive matches against Singapore and China.
He was on the bench in a home game against AS Monaco in the 13th round. Luis Enrique gave Lee Kang-in, who had a tight schedule due to long-distance flights, a chance to take rest. He was sweating profusely as he prepared for Game 5 of the Champions League against Newcastle United at his home stadium.
UEFA and local expectations were bench starts. Considering the formation of Kylian Mbappe, Randal Kolo Muani, and Usman Dembele three-top in front of him, he announced his expected starting lineup, saying that Vitinha would play as the starting pitcher instead of Lee Kang-in.
When I opened the lid, it was different from what I expected. Manager Enrique sent out Lee Kang-in as the starting pitcher. Lee made his second Champions League start as a professional player. He played in eight Champions League matches since his professional debut in Valencia, and he started in the fourth Group H match against Lille OSC when he was playing for Valencia in the 2019-20 season. At that time, he started the “War of the Stars” for 54 minutes, and Valencia won the game 4-1 at home.
Afterwards, they were all replaced. He played for 10 minutes in the first group match against Dortmund in Paris Saint-Germain, 19 minutes in the third group match against AC Milan, and 30 minutes in the fourth group match against AC Milan. In the match, which he played for 19 minutes, he scored one goal, cheering for his first ever Champions League goal.
As soon as the kickoff whistle sounded, Lee Kang-in shook Newcastle United’s defense with a link play with Mbappe on the left side. Even after that, he tried to cross after approaching near the box in an instant in connection with Mbappe twice, but Newcastle United’s defense cleared it first.
In the 12th minute of the first half, he devoted himself to the decisive defense. When Newcastle United counterattacked, they joined the defense with full speed. When Miguel Almiron tried to shoot in the box, Lee Kang-in cleared the ball with a tackle. It was an exquisite tackle that only slightly cleared the ball.
In the extra time of the first half, Lee Kang-in and Mbappe created a scoring opportunity. Mbappe penetrated after handing the ball to Lee Kang-in, and a through pass sprayed by Lee Kang-in connected to Mbappe. Usman Dembele attempted to shoot from Mbappe’s pass, but was blocked by a defender. Lee Kang-in was replaced by Marco Asensio in the 82nd minute of the second half when he was being dragged 0-1, and the team scored at the last minute to end the match with a 1-1 draw.
Lee Kang-in led his team’s attack by playing for 82 minutes in the match against Newcastle United. According to soccer statistics firm Footmob, the team recorded a pass success rate of 93 percent (66/71), six passes in attack areas, and one chance creation.
With a 50% tackle success rate (2/4), active participation in defense was also outstanding with two interceptions, seven recoveries, and four ball competitions. The media gave Lee Kang-in a 7.3 rating, the fourth highest among the starting players after Kylian Mbappe, Usman Dembele and Fabien Ruiz.
As Lee Kang-in showed an Altoran performance beyond the league to the Champions League, France was also very interested in Lee Kang-in. Ligue 1 asked Fabien, who is active in broadcasting in Korea, about Lee Kang-in.
“From a young age, Korean soccer fans expected Lee Kang-in to be a future star of Korean soccer and a talent to play for the national team. If there is a game at 1 p.m. local time in France, Korea starts at 9 p.m. That’s the time everyone can go crazy. Koreans go home to watch Lee’s game and wake up in the middle of the night,” Fabien said. “He will become a Paris Saint-Germain star. He is still young and has tremendous potential.”
On top of that, Paris Saint-Germain made its first attempt in the match against Le Havre. It will be the first time in the history of Paris Saint-Germain to wear a uniform with Korean letters printed on it.
“Since Lee Kang-in joined our club, Korean soccer fans’ interest has increased,” Paris Saint-Germain said. “We have seen an increase in the number of soccer fans through the Park des Princes home stadium and the Internet. The same goes for his social networking service followers.”
Emiliano Castro
Amari Person
Laila Wheeler
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