This summer we are running a series profiling 50 exciting players under the age of 25 — who they are, how they play, and why they could be attracting interest in the coming transfer windows.
You can find all our profiles so far here. Until now, we have run the rule over a Leverkusen livewire, the France forward who went from zero to €100million in the space of a year, and the hottest free agent of the summer.
Next is Real Mallorca’s left-footed No 10, who has signed for Paris Saint-Germain…
“No one is going to be like Leo,” Ansu Fati said when he took over Lionel Messi’s vacated No 10 shirt at Barcelona in October 2021. “No one is going to equal what Leo has done. I’m going to follow my own journey.”
Nearly two years later, Messi has left PSG for Inter Miami and Real Mallorca’s Lee Kang-in has been signed to replace him.
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Yet while Lee would not “be like” Messi nor “equal what Leo has done”, if you watch Lee it is hard not to see some elements of the Argentinian when the South Korean plays to his very best — a diminutive, left-footed No 10 who creates goals as well as scores them and can dazzle with slaloming dribbles through defences.
There was a 10-game period post-World Cup when Lee completed 41 dribbles, the most of any player in La Liga (including Vinicius Junior and Samuel Chukwueze) and he did it with a (ridiculously high) 66 per cent success rate — the La Liga average was 47.2 per cent last season.
Lee’s fearlessness to dribble anywhere, on either wing or even from the edge of his own defensive third, is a double-edged sword — some managers would be fearful of the transitions it could lead to, but others would value the solutions that such individual creativity offers. He uses both feet, can manipulate the ball well and couples this with speed and agility to escape opponents. He also has a low centre of gravity, which makes him hard to tackle.
It was in 2019 that many — myself included — first saw Lee, winning the Golden Ball (two goals, four assists) at the Under-20 World Cup as South Korea finished runners-up, losing 3-1 to Ukraine in the final. Lee scored the game’s opening goal, calmly converting a penalty just five minutes in, striding up and firing across the goalkeeper into the far corner.
Shortly after that tournament, he was given his senior national team debut by Paulo Bento and was an Olympian the next summer, scoring three times in four games as South Korea were eliminated in the quarter-finals. Lee was the youngest of the South Korean squad at the 2022 World Cup, but Bento — who stepped down as head coach after the tournament — did not favour Lee, starting him only once and giving him just 145 minutes as they reached the round of 16.
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“It is not a matter of development or improvement, but a matter of choice,” said Bento when explaining Lee’s absence from South Korea’s World Cup warm-up games in November. After all, Lee is the third-youngest debutant in South Korean history, but his performances in La Liga have only truly come to consistent fruition this season.
We can't wait to see Lee Kang-in back in LaLiga!! 🤩@RCDMallorcaUK fans, you excited? 🏴☠️#LaLigaTV pic.twitter.com/ZxJsHZsb1O
— LaLigaTV (@LaLigaTV) December 11, 2022
His enigmatic, exciting style means his best actions often make highlight reels and great goals, but Lee completed just three full 90s and had nine goal involvements (three goals, six assists) in his first three La Liga seasons. He moved from Valencia, a graduate of their academy, to Mallorca on a free transfer at the end of 2020-21.
However, Lee finished last season with six goals and six assists — one of only three midfielders in the league to record at least five goals plus assists — a particularly impressive feat considering Mallorca’s style.
They had the second-lowest possession average in La Liga last season — just 42 per cent — and played a 5-3-2 (3-5-2) with Lee playing off 6ft 4in (193cm) striker Vedat Muriqi. Mallorca, who finished ninth but only scored more goals than four other teams (37), ranked in the top three for goalkeeper pass launch rates in open play and at goal kicks — far from the expansive possession style that Lee is suited to.
Lee and Muriqi have developed a symbiotic relationship. Lee has scored goals running in behind for Muriqi’s flick-ons from long balls and often arrives late in the box to attack crosses from the right. Lee’s opener against Athletic Bilbao — capping a counter-attack from deep — showcases their relationship and his style.
The move starts with Lee dribbling out of pressure, using his body well to defend the ball and then turning away from Mikel Vesga.
Lee then hits a big switch to his winger Amath Ndiaye.
When the cross from the right is overhit, Muriqi collects and Lee arrives for a one-touch finish from the cutback.
The South Korean’s crossing ability also shines when he has an aerial powerhouse to target. Lee assisted Muriqi three times in La Liga last season — only Rodrygo to Karim Benzema and Antoine Griezmann to Alvaro Morata produced more goals (both four). All of Lee’s assists for Muriqi were crosses for headed finishes.
For the assist at home to Real Betis, it is clear how advanced Lee operates in possession, initially playing close to Muriqi and then sprinting across to the channel when centre-back Antonio Raillo switches play.
Wing-back Jaume Costa sets the ball inside to Lee, who crosses from the half-space to the back post for Muriqi.
Their combination at home to Valencia — Lee’s former club — is a different type of cross but the same pattern.
This time, the left-sided build-up is on the floor and Lee makes a diagonal run in behind the midfield.
Once again, wing-back Costa supplies him.
From the channel, Lee delivers and Muqiri scores the opening goal.
A super-strength of Lee’s is his dead-ball ability and ball-striking in general. Vinicius Jr (15) was the only under-23 in La Liga to create more big chances than Lee (14) last season, but the 12-cap South Korean ranked third across all players for shot-creating actions from set pieces.
He had almost identical assists from wide free kicks at home to Real Valladolid (the match-winner) and for the opening goal away to Real Madrid.
The 22-year-old’s ability to generate topspin and dip from these situations is why he has so much creative success.
While PSG represents progress in Lee’s career, it is hard not to feel like the move would be somewhat plateauing. Ligue 1 is a phenomenal breeding ground for young talent, but PSG’s issues in recent seasons have been underpinned by a trio of world-class forwards who do little to no defending. Lee is walking into arguably the most stacked attacking midfield/forward department in the world at a time when he needs minutes.
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He completed 12 full 90s in the league last season — four times as many as his first three seasons — and ended the campaign with three goals and two assists in his final eight appearances.
He might play a bit like Messi, now he has the chance to replace him.
(Top photo: Alex Caparros/Getty Images; design: Sam Richardson)