The coach said he trusts the player.
It is usually a very positive, hopeful sign. However, this may not necessarily be the case for Lee Kang-in (24) of Paris Saint-Germain. This is because it is unknown how many chances Luis Enrique will give Lee Kang-in in the new season. At the same time, with Enrique's remarks, Lee Kang-in's transfer opportunity has completely disappeared. It remains to be seen whether it is 'blessing' or 'curse'.
French media Foot Mercato said on the 7th (Korea time) 'Lee Kang-in's decision to stay at PSG was made regardless of his intention. Coach Enrique expressed his trust in Lee Kang-in, according to the report. Enrique's remarks changed PSG's transfer market stance. PSG initially classified Lee Kang-in as a 'sale target' in the summer transfer market, but decided not to sell Lee Kang-in due to coach Enrique's trust position.
"PSG, led by Enrique, is seeking to transfer a total of nine players during the transfer window with about a month left," Foot Mercato said. However, Lee Kang-in was not included in the list. Marco Asensio, Carlos Soler, Nordi Mukiele, Ilyes Husni, Henatu Sanchez, Fresnel Kimpembe, goalkeeper Arnaud Tenas and Gianluigi Donnarumma were included in the list, starting with Randal Colo Muani, who was loaned to Juventus for six months.
As a result, Lee Kang-in's future has been summarized as not leaving PSG in the summer transfer market.
Lee Kang-in was expected to leave PSG in search of new opportunities in the transfer market this summer. This is because he was completely alienated from the team's power in the second half of the 2024-2025 season. Originally, Lee Kang-in was one of PSG's major players until December last year. Coach Enrique put Lee Kang-in in various positions with all weather conditions, increasing his ability to digest multi-position. Lee Kang-in served as a salt of the team from 'fake No. 9' to side strikers, central midfielders, and defensive midfielders.
However, its position has rapidly disappeared since PSG acquired Napoli ace Hvicha Kvaratshelia for 70 million euros (about 111.5 billion won) in the January transfer market.
In many ways, Hbicha was evaluated as an upgraded version of Lee Kang-in and immediately took the main position of the team. In addition, PSG's midfielder team also grew rapidly and erased Lee Kang-in's place to enter. Coach Enrique turned a blind eye to Lee Kang-in from this point on.
In reflection of this situation, PSG also classified Lee Kang-in as a target for sale at the beginning of the transfer market. However, the market's interest in Lee Kang-in was not very hot. Several clubs, including Napoli, showed interest, but no suggestion was made to appeal to PSG.
Recently, however, there have been reports that Napoli and Manchester United are interested in Lee Kang-in again. Spain's leading media Marca reported on the 5th that `Lee Kang-in wants more time to play and is considering a transfer to PSG' and 'Napoli and Manchester United want Lee Kang-in'. Lee Kang-in was also thinking about getting out of the team in search of a new opportunity rather than spending his years with surplus resources at PSG.
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However, Lee Kang-in's 'PSG escape plan' went up in smoke with coach Enrique's sudden expression of trust.
It seems like a hopeful message, but it may not be. Coach Enrique did not say that he would give Lee Kang-in more chances to play. In the end, Lee Kang-in has to compete again at PSG and prove his ability on his own. It is necessary to understand Enrique's intentions well. If the manager's trust leads to the expansion of the opportunity to play, it is a great benefit for Lee Kang-in.
On the other hand, if you still can't get out of the bench even after entering the season, your career could be hit hard. Attention is focusing on whether Lee Kang-in, who gained coach Enrique's trust again, will be able to escape from PSG's surplus resources.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
