Coach Luis Enrique sends trust, but the French media’s view of Lee Kang-in is full of doubts.
Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) narrowly tied Stade Rennes 1-1 in the 23rd round of the 2023-24 season in Paris at 1:05 a.m. on the 26th (Korea time). PSG ranked first in the league with 16 wins, 6 draws and 1 loss (54 points), and Rennes ranked seventh in the league with 9 wins, 8 draws and 6 losses (35 points).
After finishing the 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Qatar Asian Cup, Lee Kang-in wore a PSG uniform again. He was absent in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 against Real Sociedad. Coach Enrique said abdominal pain caused by a viral infection was the reason for his absence.
He returned from the match against Nantes. “He is in very good condition. He could not participate in the last match (against Sociedad), but he suffered from abdominal pain. He can play this time. He is in 100 percent physical condition. He played in the Asian Cup without injury and showed high level performance. “He can play in the match against Nantes,” Enrique said at a pre-conference.
France’s Get Football News also said, “Coach Enrique can use Lee Kang-in, who returned from the Asian Cup, as a starter.” I saw him play in the midfield, but I expected him to compete with Marco Asensio. The strikers were Bradley Barcola, Kylian Mbappe and Usman Dembele. Lee Kang-in is likely to play with Warren Zaire-Emery and Manuel Ugarte if he starts as a midfielder.
Lee Kang-in, who started as an observatory player, showed a rather disappointing performance. Based on the soccer statistics media “Sopha Score”, Lee Kang-in recorded 73 ball touches, 90% pass success rate, 2 key passes, 9 crosses (successful twice), 1 long pass (successful once), and 1 decisive opportunity creation. The media gave a rating of 7.3, making it the sixth highest in the team. “After returning from the Asian Cup, he played the role of a right winger that clearly did not fit his qualifications, making little difference,” said Get French Football. “He was replaced by Dembele.”
After the match against Nantes, Lee Kang-in said he made up with Son Heung-min. Lee Kang-in is known to have been involved in the so-called Table Tennis Gate and has given Son Heung-min a step back. The Korea Football Association officially became a problem when it admitted the dispute between the two, and while the national team issue was causing public resentment, there was a loud voice of criticism as the internal strife came out. The arrow of criticism was directed at Lee Kang-in.
Once again, he bowed his head and went to Son Heung-min and made a sincere apology. Lee Kang-in said on his personal SNS on the 21st, “At the last Asian Cup tournament, I was very disappointed with the whole team, including Heung-min, and the soccer fans, because of my short thoughts and rash actions. I thought it was important to visit Heung-min in person and apologize sincerely, and I had time to understand the weight of the team’s captain and reflect on myself through long conversations. I thank Heung-min again through this article for welcoming me and responding to me in London.”
Then ⠀ “I knew how desperate the competition was for Heung-min, but I think all the problems began in a way that I could not fully understand his sincerity with my words and actions. In particular, he did not listen to advice given to me by Heung-min for the sake of unity as an elder brother and as a teammate, and expressed only my opinion. On that day, I did something that I should never have done at the dinner table. Looking back, it was something that I should never have done. I deeply regret these things. Respect and dedication to the team are the most important things, but I lacked a lot. I contacted each of my seniors and colleagues in the national team and apologized,” he said.
Lee Kang-in also said, “I deeply reflect on the lack of consideration and respect for my words and actions when dealing with my seniors and colleagues. I promised to be more respectful and respectful when dealing with my seniors and colleagues. I would like to thank my seniors and colleagues for accepting my apology and embracing me through this article once again. Some players have also been criticized for my actions. I think I should also receive criticism from them. I am sorry once again for disappointing the soccer fans, away from the exemplary and duty that I should have as a Korean national player despite having too much expectation and support.”
The incident ended when Son Heung-min posted a picture of himself with Lee Kang-in. Since then, Lee Kang-in has prepared for the match against Rennes. France’s “90MIN” said, “Lee Kang-in will start in the midfield along with Fabian Lewis and Warren Zaire-Emery.” Vitinha is given a break and the right winger is expected to start Usman Dembele. Kylian Mbappe, who is certain to leave after the end of this season, was also listed in the expected starting lineup.
Following the match against Nantes, Lee Kang-in started against Rennes. For PSG, Barcola, Dembele, Mbappe, Lee Kang-in, Vitinha, Danilu, Fabian, Beraldu, Hernández, Hakimi, Gianluigi Donnarumma started. The game was a poor one. PSG, which had been showing frustrating performance, hit a left-footed shot after Amin Guiri peeled off the defense with a surprise dribble breakthrough in the 36th minute of the first half, but this time it escaped to the side of the goal.
Lee Kang-in scored a brilliant pass. In the 38th minute of the first half, Lee Kang-in poked a spatial pass toward Barcola near the half line. He even tried to break through, but the attack fell through as he was blocked by the defense. In the 41st minute of the first half, he saw Mbappe and scored a pass, but the opponent’s defense cut it off first. The first half ended with Ren leading 1-0.
PSG took the change at the beginning of the second half. Excluding Lee Kang-in, Marco Asensio was put in. Dembele fired a left-footed shot from the right in the 14th minute of the second half, but the goalkeeper reached out and blocked it. Mbappe’s shot came over the goal in the 18th minute of the second half. PSG took a drastic change. In the 20th minute of the second half, Kolo Muani and Gonzalo Hamus were put in, excluding Mbappe and Barcola.
PSG had the opportunity to equalize the game. At the 30th minute of the second half, Kolo Muani broke through the side and lost the ball. When Hamus was about to take away Dure’s ball, he tripped over and the referee immediately declared a penalty kick (PK). However, after the on-field review, the referee reversed the decision and rather gave Hamus a warning.
PSG got PK this time. There was confusion in the penalty box during the attack in the second half of the stoppage time. Hamus fell while dribbling. The referee declared a corner kick this time. As a result of this VAR check, he declared PK. Hamus came out as a kicker and scored an equalizer. In the end, the game ended 1-1.
Despite not losing the match, criticism was strong against Lee Kang-in. Lee’s key stets included 38 ball touches, 88 percent pass success rate (32 attempts-28 successful), one key pass, zero shots, zero dribbles, and six turnovers. “Coach Enrique seems determined to secure time for Lee Kang-in to play. However, Lee Kang-in has not displayed any influence at all. His ball handling skills were like a waste. He gave up ownership to Ren and gave him a 3.5 point rating.” “Lee Kang-in has been playing as a starter for two consecutive games since returning from the Asian Cup, and he has shown aggressive performance and aggressive performance, but he kept giving up possession of the ball.” Enrique gave three points in rating, saying, “After the first half, he scored Marco Asensio.”
Following Lee Kang-in, Mbappe was also criticized. Mbappe is in the process of becoming a reality. Spain’s Marca said on the 19th, “Mbappe has already signed a contract with Real. He signed a five-year contract with Real. Mbappe and Real have negotiated for the past two weeks and it was agreed that he would become Real players on July 1 this year. With this, Real’s courtship of over 130 days will come to an end. Going back, it started in the summer of 2017. Now Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) will not make any suggestions about Mbappe.”
Guillaume Balag, a member of the British public broadcaster “BBC,” said on the 20th, “PSG striker Mbappe has agreed to join Real in the upcoming summer. Although he has not officially signed with Real yet, an official announcement could be made if PSG and Real face-off are not made in the UCL for the rest of the season.” 고수익알바
“Mbappe plans to sign a five-year contract with Real. He will be paid around 15 million euros a year. In addition, he will receive a bonus of 150 million euros over five years. He will also keep a certain percentage of his portrait rights,” he said, explaining the amount and contract details. Without PSG making any rebuttal, Mbappe’s trip to Real is in the process of becoming a fait accompli.
In the match against Nantes, Mbappe started in Rennes, who started in the bench. He was expected to see good performance but had no goal. He surprised everyone by getting replaced in the 20th minute of the second half. Others including 90 MIN gave three points to Mbappe. Talk Sports of the U.K. announced on Wednesday, “Mbappe was booed by fans. He played his first match in front of home fans after the news that he had verbally agreed to go to Real Madrid this coming summer. In the second half, Mbappe trudged out to replace Gonzalo Hamus, and the Parc des Princes booed him.” “At some point in the near future, we have to get used to playing without Mbappe,” Enrique said.
PSG is worried because even Lee Kang-in is sluggish in a mood that is unstable due to rumors of a transfer to Mbappe.