Unfortunately, Hwang Hee-chan is still unable to play in his team game immediately after the transfer was cancelled. Leipzig defeated Bayer 04 Leverkusen 1-0 in the 19th round of the Bundesliga 2020-2021 held on the 31st, but Hwang Hee-chan could not hit the ground. This is a scene that suggests that Hwang Hee-chan’s actions in the second half will still not be smooth.
Hwang Hee-chan left Red Bull Salzburg in Austria last summer to join Leipzig, but only scored one goal in nine games. In November of last year, after joining the national team A match held in Austria, he suffered bad luck from being infected with Corona 19.
Hwang Hee-chan, who was in crisis, sought a breakthrough in the winter transfer market. In particular, EPL West Ham is the team that was most popularly discussed as Hwang Hee-chan’s destination. There is an expectation for Hwang Hee-chan’s performance in the Austrian League and European club competition last year, and the challenge of the’Dream Stage’ Premier League was a point that could provide a new motivation for the player himself.
However, contrary to expectations, Leipzig did not allow Hwang Hee-chan to move. Director Nagelsmann said at an official press conference held before the Leverkusen on the 29th, “If the team cannot bring more strikers, it makes no sense to send Hwang Hee-chan.” For Leipzig, which is in fierce competition with the leader Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, it meant that he could not send Hwang Hee-chan in a situation where it was difficult to manage the offensive team due to the injuries and sluggishness of the attackers.
The bitter part is that the reason for catching Hwang Hee-chan is that the character of’insurance’ in case of an emergency is more visible, rather than because the player must be included in the strategy.
Of course, Nagelsmann also said that Hwang Hee-chan, “I haven’t had enough opportunity to show my skills yet,” and that there could be more opportunities to participate in the second half. However, it is difficult to truly believe this 100% since it is a common excuse for coaches to thoroughly read players who are dissatisfied with the playing time. If a player who must use it for his power, it is worth giving him a chance even in terms of motivation in the situation where the transfer was lost.
Of course, for all players, competition is an inevitable process. However, for players, the difference in belief whether or not they are included in the’director’s plan’ has a great psychological effect. Son Heung-min, who has now grown up as Tottenham’s ace, also struggled with his first year in England. It was Mauricio Pochettino who held back Heung-min Son, who was seriously considering returning the German Bundesliga.
Coach Pochettino, who wanted to recruit Son Heung-min from the days of Southampton, held personal interviews with confidence that he could show a good enough performance in the EPL after completing his adaptation period. Son Heung-min also believed in such a manager and decided to remain in the team and try again after hard work. In the end, Son Heung-min showed remarkable performances from the second year, and became a recognized striker in Europe beyond Tottenham.
It is questionable whether director Nagelsmann will have enough expectations and trust to Hwang Hee-chan as the relationship between’Pochettino and Son Heung-min’. Rather, as a result, there are more cases in which the’director’s opposition to transfer’ ended tragically from the perspective of players. Looking at the case of a Korean player alone, Lee Cheong-yong (Ulsan) during the Crystal Palace days and Yoon Seok-young (Gangwon) during the Queens Park Rangers period believed in the coach’s lip service that they would give them more opportunities and had to give up loans or transfers, but the promise It was not kept in the end.
From the manager’s point of view, it was not possible to give all players an equal opportunity anyway, and it was necessary to secure a variety of options that could be used as a shogi, depending on the situation where team performance is a priority. Hwang Hee-chan had already been pushed out of Nagelsmann’s lineup before the bad news of the corona confirmed. Rather, he gave more contests to transfer students who recruited later than Hwang Hee-chan. Some examples include the midst of Yusuf Poulsen and Alexandre Sørlos, and the introduction of winger Emile Forsbury to the forefront even in a situation where there is a shortage of strikers.
If the reason Leipzig did not send Hwang Hee-chan was simply a difference in terms of contract rather than the need of the player, it could be a more worrying situation. Leipzig is known to have paid about 9 million euros (about 12.1 billion won) in transfer fees for Hwang Hee-chan from Salzburg. It is normal for the club to want to recover the transfer fee invested first in order to send Hwang Hee-chan, who has not played well for one season after the transfer. However, it doesn’t seem easy to come up with a club that suggests that level of conditions due to the current market conditions.
In the end, after Hwang Hee-chan’s loan failure in the transfer market this winter, if the situation continues to be unable to play in the second half as it is now, it could be the worst-case scenario. Anyway, Hwang Hee-chan has no choice but to seek a chance again by proving his performance in his team. Is it possible to turn this ordeal into an opportunity only with the individual’s efforts?
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