PSG – Montpellier: the masterclass of X factor Kang-In Lee!

In freezing cold, the Parc des Princes opened its doors to launch the 11th day of Ligue 1. In its lair, Paris Saint-Germain, runner-up to OGC Nice at kick-off, welcomed Montpellier HSC, eleventh, with two objectives in mind: to recover, temporarily, the championship leader’s chair and thus build up confidence before flying next Tuesday to Giuseppe Meazza’s side to challenge AC Milan in the Champions League. For this, Luis Enrique once again decided to align his 4-2-4 where Kang-In Lee and Ousmane Dembélé surrounded the duo Mbappé-Kolo Muani, established at the forefront. In midfield, the sparkling Warren Zaire-Emery accompanied Manuel Ugarte while Nordi Mukiele joined the starting lineup alongside Milan Skriniar, Marquinhos and Achraf Hakimi.

Kang-In Lee, omnipresent and already indispensable!

Eager to exult, the residents of the Park were quick to warm up thanks to one of the great men of this perfect evening: Kang-In Lee. At the conclusion of a sublime collective movement, the South Korean striker – who took advantage of a perfect cross from Achraf Hakimi and the subtle feint from Kylian Mbappé – opened the scoring with a perfect strike into the top corner of an impassive Benjamin Lecomte (1-0, 10th). Launched by this goal, his second in Parisian colors and his first in L1, the number 19 of the Rouge et Bleu then offered himself a recital in a match ultimately perfectly mastered by PSG (3-0). Perfect in transmission, inspired in his orientation of the game, in all the good offensive moves and very involved defensively, the summer reinforcement of the capital club then confirmed its rise in power.

Decisive against AC Milan, decisive passer against Stade Brestois last weekend and once again scorer this Friday evening, Kang-In Lee is gradually establishing himself in Luis Enrique’s eleven. As proof, the Spanish technician decided to take him out at the hour mark. A sign of the former La Roja coach’s desire to make him debut next Tuesday on Giuseppe Meazza’s pitch? For the moment, it is impossible to say for sure but one thing is certain, the former Valencia and Mallorca player has scored new valuable points. Warmly acclaimed by the Parisian supporters when he gave way to Vitinha, also brilliant when he entered the game, Kang-In Lee shines in this collective. On the left side, in the midfield, between the lines, the native of Incheon seems imperturbable.

An essential element in balance

A perfect link between the Parisian offensive players, like his undeniable complicity with Kylian Mbappé, he also stands out for his constant involvement. Not sparing with effort and ready to make any sacrifices to help the team in its search for balance, he brought the Parc des Princes up on a tackled ball and narrowly recovered just before the break (38th). Exemplary in attitude and valuable in his ability to multiply runs to unbalance the Hérault block, Kang-In Lee simply burst the screen. Already with 100% successful passes (34), 100% ground duels won (6) and 100% successful dribbles (3) at the break, the 22-year-old crack completed his score without a single false note (47 transmissions successful out of the 47 attempts, 5 balls recovered, almost 70% of duels won). A performance inevitably praised by his coach at the final whistle.

Interviewed at the microphone of Prime VideoLuis Enrique was logically full of praise for his protégé. “I am very happy with this match. Everything was good. We had a very good result and we deserve this result. We all like goals (laughs). We dominated the entire match. Montpellier is one of the best away teams. It was very hard to win. It happened. I’ve seen a lot of things we’re working on. And I am very happy with the involvement of all the players. They seek to apply what we have worked on. I am very happy. Kang-In Lee is magnificent. What if I asked for this player first? No, it’s Luis Campos. Kang-In Lee is small but he can play from anywhere. He works defensively, he has physique, personality, he can score. He is a very complete player. This is a superb acquisition. We knew he was a player with a future. He works and he can do even better”launched the 53-year-old Spaniard before adding another layer at a press conference.

The PSG locker room is a total fan!

“He is a player who has played in Spain for a long time, whom I know very well. It’s a magnificent recruitment from Luis Campos and the club, I’m very lucky to have him. He is very attractive to anyone. He resists pressure, he makes good decisions, he scores goals… He has this hunger to play, it’s very important for this type of player”, indicated the Parisian technician. Logically elected man of the match by the FM editorial team, the new darling of PSG was also highly praised by Milan Skriniar, present in the mixed zone. “Warren Zaire-Emery is an incredible player, he is very young, and so is Lee Kang-in. I was surprised when I arrived”, declared the 28-year-old Slovak defender. Back after a superb tour with his country, Kang-In Lee is, today, on cloud nine. This bodes well for the rest of the season but also for PSG, leader of Ligue 1 and now undefeated for 5 games in a row in all competitions. A definitely perfect evening before crossing swords with AC Milan.