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Ji-sung Park

AFP



Arguably the hottest Asian player in world football is South Korea's Park Ji-Sung recently embarked on a new adventure with mighty Manchester United of the English Premier League.
At 21-years-old the man from Seoul lit up the 2002 World Cup on home soil as he played a pivotal role in a mind blowing run to the semi-finals.
Under the guidance of coach Guus Hiddink, who would later bring Park to PSV Eindhoven, he rose majestically to the occasion of the World Cup, scoring a peach against Portugal, and he is now considered irreplaceable in the national side.
Park is an energetic midfielder with brilliant technical skills, an eye for goal and armed with an explosive free-kick.
He first considered a career as a PE teacher but shelved that idea when Japanese club Kyoto Purple Sanga signed him out of high school in 2000 and he spent three seasons at the club.
The higher and more physical qualities of the European game saw Park struggle to adapt but with the departure of key players in 2004, notably Arjen Robben and Mateja Kezman who went to Chelsea, Park's importance to the club increased.
His popularity also grew with the fans and in 2005, any onlookers who hadn't heard of the gritty Korean sat up and took notice during PSV's impressive run to the semi-finals of the Champions League.
Many experts rated him the best player over two legs in a nail-biting battle against AC Milan in which Park scored in the return leg only for a late Milan goal to cruelly shatter what would have been a heroic comeback.
During his time at PSV he won two Dutch championships, including the 2005 League Cup double.
When clubs like Chelsea and Manchester United began to show interest, it was just a matter of time before he was on the move and he opted for Old Trafford to become the first South Korean to play in the English Premier League.
He also scored the final goal in South Korea's 4-0 win over Kuwait which sent his country to the 2006 World Cup for the sixth consecutive tournament.
Park's stubborn, hard working character will serve him well in England where he must now conquer one of the toughest leagues in football.
Few would bet against him not succeeding.