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Lee Kang-in and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) will soon talk about the future.
L'Equipe, a leading French media outlet, analyzed the future of the four players mentioned on the 3rd (Korea time) 'What is the current status of PSG's bench members, including Lee Kang-in, Warren Zaire-Emery, Gonzalo Hamus and Lucas Hernandez?'
Lee Kang-in's position is the worst since his transfer to PSG. Last season, he failed to play much time in important games as he was pushed out of the main competition in the second half of the season. Things got worse in the second half of this season. PSG is on its way to winning its first European Champions League (UCL), but Lee Kang-in is hard to find in UCL.
Lee Kang-in, who played in all games until the UCL round of 16, played only 16 minutes in five games from the round of 16 to the first round of the semifinals. This 16 minutes was also an opportunity given to Liverpool in extra time in the second round of the round of 16. PSG coach Luis Enrique does not seem to have any intention of using Lee Kang-in as the main player at the moment. It is being used as a player for main players' physical strength in the league.
Lee Kang-in, who needs to improve his skills by playing in the middle of the game, may be a better option to leave PSG if he cannot play in major games. Lee Kang-in is also found to be thirsty for playing time.
L'Equipe said 'Enrique highly appreciates Lee Kang-in's positional diversity, and he is positioned as a rotation resource. Lee Kang-in wants to play more, but he is not showing any particular dissatisfaction with the team winning. He explained that he is in a general situation where he is faithful to training even if he has fewer appearances and wants opportunities in major games.
Lee Kang-in is only faithful to his role for now so that the team's flow toward the treble does not interfere, but he is very eager to play. There is a high possibility that the situation will not change under Enrique, so he may have to consider moving. PSG's position is also known to have changed slightly.
Until last winter's transfer market, PSG classified Lee Kang-in as an absolutely impossible resource to sell. At that time, Lee Kang-in was the team's main player, and he was showing outstanding performance by playing his part in various positions. Several clubs, including Arsenal, showed interest, but PSG did not accept the sale.
It's different now. L'Equipe said 'Lee Kang-in and the club will discuss the situation after the end of the season. PSG has already rejected Arsenal's interest once, and if the club does not allow the transfer, Lee Kang-in, who has a contract remaining until 2028, is likely to stay. On the other hand, if the club goes on sale, he can consider new options. As PSG hired Lee Kang-in for 22 million euros (about 34.4 billion won) two years ago, it wants an appropriate amount when selling it and does not consider disposing of it at a low price.
With Arsenal highly concerned by Martin Odegaard's serious slump, interest in Lee Kang-in is likely to continue. Interest in Manchester United and Newcastle United was also confirmed in the transfer market last winter. If PSG wants to receive an appropriate transfer fee from Lee Kang-in, the only teams that can afford it financially are Premier League (EPL) clubs or other European big clubs. In reality, the most likely transfer is to EPL.
Reporter Kim Dae-sik rlaeotlr2024@sportschosun.com
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
