Paik Seung-ho #8

Profile

A gifted player who made waves aged 13, winning the Cha Bum-kun Football Award for the top young prospect in the country, and joining Barcelona’s La Masia academy. The weight of expectation was huge, but his progress was hit when Fifa imposed a transfer ban on Barcelona for breaching transfer and registration rules around signing international players aged under 18, barring him from competitive action during his formative years. He left the club in 2017 for Girona, then moved to Germany with Darmstadt 98 in 2019. He returned to Korea with Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in 2021 before a move to Birmingham in 2024. Last year he discussed the impact English football had made on him, saying in an interview with the University of Birmingham: “Moving to England, I realise football means so much. It's never just a game - it's everything to this city, for everyone here. It can bring you down hard, but it gives you a rush like nothing else. That's what makes football such a massive sport, and I've truly come to feel that way – it's why I keep pushing to play with a full heart." He made his international debut in 2019, and scored a brilliant goal against Brazil during the 2022 World Cup.

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