Photographs: Manchester United & Tottenham Hotspur
From 2005 to 2025, from Park Ji-sung to Son Heung-min! Two of the best gamers to ever play within the Premier League and everybody else in between.
takes a stroll down reminiscence lane, reflecting on the Korean gamers within the Premier League.
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Following the current switch of Park Seung-soo to Newcastle United from Suwon Samsung Bluewings, he has turn out to be the twentieth Korean participant to signal for a Premier League membership within the final twenty years.
Since Manchester United’s signing of Park Ji-sung twenty years in the past in 2005 and the success that adopted, a number of Korean gamers have gone on to play in England’s top-tier.
Now, forward of Tottenham Hotspur’s match with Newcastle United in Seoul on Sunday, August 3, in what would be the first-ever conflict between two Premier League sides within the Coupang Play Sequence, it serves as the right time to look again on how Korean gamers have impacted the Premier League and have earned worldwide recognition for his or her efforts.
The 2000s: The Trailblazers
After South Korea made all of it the best way to the semi-finals of the 2002 FIFA World Cup on dwelling soil, soccer within the East Asian nation modified ceaselessly. What would observe within the subsequent few years would form the nation’s footballing identification.
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Having introduced his arrival on the worldwide stage with the profitable purpose towards Portugal within the FIFA World Cup — a purpose that’s nonetheless rewatched and fondly remembered in spite of everything these years, Park Ji-sung was a star in his homeland and had already proved his pedigree in Europe after profitable two Eredivisie titles with PSV Eindhoven in addition to scoring towards AC Milan within the UEFA Champions League semi-final.
Regardless of all this, when Manchester United’s celebrated supervisor Sir Alex Ferguson determined to convey him to Previous Trafford for a modest £4m, it was met with scepticism by the followers.
“I need to present my worth to United when it comes to my skill, not for some advertising and marketing technique for Asia. I’m not going to England for enterprise,” these had been the Korean midfielder’s phrases after his signing was confirmed.
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“Manchester United is probably the most well-known membership on the planet. I get the prospect to play in the very best workforce with the very best gamers.”
Reality be informed, it will want a separate chapter on Park’s affect on Manchester United within the following seasons — he gained all of it and silenced his doubters.
The midfielder earned the nickname “Three-lung Park” for his all-action shows, profitable 4 Premier League titles in addition to tasting success within the UEFA Champions League and FIFA Membership World Cup.
Park’s South Korea nationwide workforce and PSV teammateLee Younger-pyo made the change to the Premier League a season after him when he swapped Eindhoven for London after signing for Tottenham Hotspur.
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The left-back began the Spurs’ love story with Korean gamers together with his tempo and ability as a full-back, impressing the group and was a member of the membership’s triumphant League Cup marketing campaign in 2008 once they beat Chelsea 2-1 within the last.
Subsequent to reach was Seol Ki-hyeon and though the winger was successful within the EFL Championship, his purple patch within the Premier League lasted for a really quick interval.
4 objectives and 4 assists within the 2006/07 season for Studying had been the very best he might muster, in a season during which he had scored towards the likes of West Ham United and Sheffield United.
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Okay League 1 all-time top-scorer Lee Dong-gook was the following in line as his January 2007 switch from Pohang Steelers to Middlesbrough made him the first-ever participant to instantly safe a switch from Okay League 1 to the Premier League, showcasing the rising affect of Korea’s home league.
Regardless of a disappointing spell in England, that switch set the tone because it instantly opened up the Korean marketplace for Premier League golf equipment. Bolton Wanderers used that avenue to snap up Lee Chung-yong from FC Seoul in 2009 and it will show to be a masterstroke.
The 2010s: The Superstars
Lee Chung-yong rapidly turned the following Korean star within the Premier League, with ten purpose contributions in his debut Premier League season, incomes him Bolton’s Participant of the Yr Award in 2010.
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Targets towards Argentina and Uruguay adopted within the 2010 FIFA World Cup because the “Blue Dragon” went on to make over 100 Premier League appearances for Bolton and Crystal Palace in an illustrious profession and continues to be going sturdy on the age of 37 in Okay League 1 for Ulsan HD.
Lee’s World Cup teammate Park Chu-young would observe him into the Premier League when he signed for Arsenal however a disastrous spell noticed him depart after making only a solitary league look.
After impressing on the 2011 AFC Asian Cup with 4 objectives and two assists,Ji Dong-won was purchased by Sunderland from Jeonnam Dragons that summer time.
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Targets towards Chelsea and Manchester Metropolis, with the latter after coming off the bench in what proved to be the winner, had been his greatest Premier League moments as one other Korean pale away after a shiny begin.
Yun Suk-young and Kim Bo-kyung’s Premier League flame additionally flickered for a really quick whereas, with the duo showing for a single season for QPR and Cardiff Metropolis respectively, with Kim notably scoring a stoppage-time equaliser towards Manchester United in 2013.
After which got here the time of Ki Sung-yeung, South Korea’s elegant midfielder who stepped onto the Premier League scene, happening to play in 9 seasons in England, amassing near 200 Premier League appearances after turning out for Swansea Metropolis, Sunderland and Newcastle United.
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His greatest season by far got here in 2014/15 in Swansea’s colors, scoring eight Premier League objectives which included twice towards the Pink Devils to completely spotlight the truth that Ki was equally adept at taking part in as a defensive midfielder in addition to a extra superior central midfielder each time wanted.
The 2015/16 season signalled the start ofSon Heung-min’s period after Tottenham signed him from Bayer Leverkusen, making him the costliest Asian participant in soccer historical past!
In 10 seasons on the North London membership, Son has executed all of it. 127 objectives and 77 assists in 333 appearances makes him some of the iconic gamers ever to grace the Premier League.
The 33-year-old South Korea nationwide workforce captain has ended Spurs’ 17-year trophy drought after they defeated Manchester United to raise the UEFA Europa League in Might.
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Son additionally helped his beloved Spurs attain the UEFA Champions League Closing in 2018/19 and in a person stage, he’s arguably the best Korean participant of all time.
From FIFA Puskas Award in 2020 to the Premier League Golden Boot in 2022, “Sonny” has turn out to be a world family title and has actually taken Korean soccer to unimaginable heights.
The 2020s: The Future
Whereas the curtains will come down on Son’s time within the Premier League with a reported transfer to Main League Soccer (MLS) on the playing cards, his compatriotHwang Hee-chan stays in England at Wolves.
One other nationwide workforce star, Hwang’s greatest season up to now got here in 2023/24 when he recorded 12 objectives and three assists and has since gone on to turn out to be the most recent Korean participant to achieve 100 Premier League appearances.
The successes of their predecessors imply there isn’t any scarcity of idols for the present crop with an increasing number of massive Premier League golf equipment instantly buying skills from the Okay League, as will be evidenced from the current transfers ofYang Min-hyeok from Gangwon FC to Spurs and Park Seung-soo from Suwon Samsung Bluewings to Newcastle.
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The teenage duo are tipped for large issues and at such a younger age can already get a style of the very best stage of aggressive membership soccer.
Yang was adjudged because the Okay League 1 Younger Participant of the Yr final 12 months after 12 objectives and 6 assists in his debut skilled season. He has since continued his improvement and warmed up for his debut Premier League season by netting towards Stoke Metropolis and Oxford United within the EFL Championship.
Park, however, impressed for the youth nationwide workforce on the AFC U20 Asian Cup earlier this 12 months, with the Magpies saying his arrival in late July.
With Tottenham and Newcastle set to sq. off on this weekend’s Coupang Play Sequence, followers in Korea and overseas will get a glimpse of Korea’s most interesting skills coming by as they set their eyes on following within the footsteps of yesteryear legends and making a reputation for themselves within the Premier League.