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Will Lee Kang-in be able to play in the match against Arsenal.
Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) will play Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium in London at 4 a.m. on the 30th (Korea time) in the first leg of the 2024-2025 European Champions League (UCL) semifinals. In order for PSG to reach the final, it must prevent defeat in the first round.
Attention is focused on Lee Kang-in's participation ahead of the game, but the reality is not very good. This is because Lee Kang-in has not played as a main player at PSG since the second half of the year and has been pushed out as a rotation member. Lee Kang-in's position has narrowed sharply due to the sudden explosion of Usman Dembele, the recruitment of new ace Hvicha Kvaratshelia and the rapid growth of Desire du.
The record of Lee Kang-in's narrow position is the record of playing in the UCL. Until the UCL group stage, Lee Kang-in played in all games, starting and replacing. In the second round of the round of 16 playoff games, he played as a substitute in both games.
However, from the round of 16 of the UCL, Lee Kang-in has not been selected by PSG coach Luis Enrique. The round of 16 against Liverpool only got a chance in extra time in the second leg. In the last quarterfinal against Aston Villa, he did not play a second in both games. As this trend is maintained in the league, Lee Kang-in's appearance in the match against Arsenal is very unclear.
Lee Kang-in's name was not on the PSG's expected starting list of local media ahead of the match against Arsenal. According to the expected PSG selection list released on the official UEFA website, Hvitsa, Dembele, Due, Fabian Ruiz, Vitinha, João Neves, Nunu Mendes, Willian Pacho, Marquignos, Ashraf Hakimi and Gianluigi Donnarumma were among them. PSG's starting list, which was predicted by the British Evening Standard, was the same. No media predicted that Lee Kang-in would start.
The reason why we have to carefully watch whether we will play in the UCL is because it is directly related to Lee Kang-in's future. It is understandable that there are so many good players in PSG that there can be difficulties in the main competition. Even if he does not come out as a starter, if Lee Kang-in plays as a substitute, it can be said that Enrique still believes in Lee Kang-in.
However, it is not strange to accept that Lee Kang-in has been excluded from Enrique's plan to play at all. It's not just one or two games, and if this happens at the UCL, the tournament that PSG considers the most important this season, Lee Kang-in will have no choice but to consider transferring.
Since a similar situation was created in the second half of last season, if Lee Kang-in is not trusted in the second half for two consecutive seasons, it may be more important to go to another club and experience the big stage properly. This is because it is very important to maintain the performance because there is a World Cup at the end of next season.
Reporter Kim Dae-sik rlaeotlr2024@sportschosun.com
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
