Lee Kang-in (23, Paris Saint-Germain) was narrowly left out of the French champions’ PSG Team of the Year.
The French publication L’Equipe announced its best 11 of the season on Monday to celebrate PSG’s 2023-2024 Ligue 1 title.
Bradley Barcola, Kylian Mbappe, and Ousmane Dembele formed the front line, while Fabian Luiz, Vitinha, and Warren Zairemery formed the midfield. Luca Hernandez-Danilu Pereira-Marquinhos-Ashraf Hakimi in the back four and Gianluigi Donnarumma in goal.
“This is the quintessential team of the 2023-2024 French champions,” says Leclerc, “and many of them played a real role in helping PSG win their 12th league title in history, especially thanks to Luis Enrique’s squad management.
PSG’s depth and proper rotation of the squad is a testament to their success.
“It’s a win with Enrique’s touch. The frequent injuries to Fresnel Kimpembe and Nuno Mendes, the underperformance of newcomers such as Randal Kolo Moani and the lack of a quality sixth midfielder forced him to find a solution: he dropped Vitinha to defensive midfield and gradually used Bacca on the left wing.”
“PSG has never relied on so many French players since it was acquired by Qatar Sports Investments (QSI),” says Leclerc. 스포츠토토 “In addition to Hernandez’s arrival and Ziyer Emery’s leap into the first team, Enrique has been 100% involved in the rebalancing. In particular, Dembele and Bacca have replaced Lionel Messi and Neymar,” he added.
PSG underwent a major overhaul last summer. They hired a new coach, Enrique, and got rid of veterans like Messi, Neymar, and Marco Verratti. In their place, they brought in youngsters like Lee Kang-In, Gonzalo Hamus, Ugarte, and Kolo Moani to build for the future. There were more than 10 freshmen.
Lee Kang-in was also a consistent performer, but he didn’t make the best 11.
Instead, he was recognized as the 12th member of the squad, named among the seven key substitutes.
Lee was away for the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou and the 2023 Asian Cup in Qatar, but his versatility made him a favorite of Enrique, and he contributed to the team in several positions. His league tally this season is 2 goals and 3 assists in 20 games and 1247 minutes.
In particular, the Frenchman has been a force to be reckoned with when it matters, helping PSG win two titles. It started with winning the Trophée des Champions. Lee scored the opening and final goals against Toulouse to lift the trophy with his own hands. He was also named the official MVP.
In the previous match, against Le Havre, Lee provided a valuable assist. He came on as a substitute at the start of the second half and scored a theatrical equalizer with a courier cross just before the end of the game. Five minutes into second-half stoppage time, Hammers tied the game at 3-3 with a header from Lee’s cross after shaking off a defender.
With the narrow victory, PSG clinched the Ligue 1 title early.
The gap between PSG (70 points) and second-place AS Monaco (58 points) widened to 12 points when AS Monaco lost at Olympique Lyonnais on March 29, which allowed PSG to clinch their third consecutive league title early, regardless of the outcome of the rest of their schedule. The official Ligue 1 account also posted a video of Hamus’ goal, calling it “the goal to win the title.
Lee completed the ‘double’ by winning his first league title. He had previously won the Copa del Rey in the 2018-2019 season while playing for Valencia in Spain, but had never won a league title before. He took to his personal social media to share a ‘victory video’ released by the PSG club, adding a trophy emoji to express his joy.
Lee was also recognized for his performance by being named to the Ligue 1 Team of the Week for Round 31.
He earned a spot in the Ligue 1’s best 11, lining up at left midfield in a 4-3-3 formation.
Now, Lee’s eyes turn to the UEFA Champions League (UCL), the ‘war of the stars’. PSG will face Dortmund in the first leg of the UCL semifinals of the 2023-2024 season at BVB Stadion Dortmund in Dortmund, 온라인 슬롯 Germany, on February 2. It’s the final gateway to the final.
If Lee plays, it will be his first UCL quarterfinal appearance. However, he will likely start from the bench. Not only UEFA, but also local French media outlets such as Le Parisien and L’Equipe have all predicted that Lee will be left out. Lee is expected to come on in the second half and play the role of a joker.