Park Chu-Young (박주영 Park Chu-young, born July 10, 1985) is a South Korean footballer who was awarded the "AFC Young Player of the Year" by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) in 2004. He plays as a striker with FC Seoul.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Height | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | FC Seoul | ||
| ‡ National team caps and goals as of 23 June2006 | |||
Park Chu-young's immense fame with the Korean public was sparked by his stellar performance at the 2004 Asia Youth Championships where he led the U-20 Korean national team to a record-breaking 11th title. In the process, he swept the Golden Ball Award, MVP of the finals, and the Most Valuable Player of the tournament. He was also capped for the South Korean U-20 team at the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship.
The country's "Park Chu-young" hysteria grew even more wildly when Korea's U-20 squad participated in the Qatar eight-team invitational in January 2005. Scoring nine goals in four games, Park had two against China, three against Ukraine, two against Algeria, and two against Japan as Korea won the tournament.
The Korean national team and its fans, known also as the Red Devils, gave Park the nickname of "football genius" due to his outstanding dribbling and shots, along with his notably high 150 IQ. Fans say he's one of the best players on the team.
Park's first season with FC Seoul was very successful, becoming Korean league's best young player and holding the title of best scorer in his first professional season career. Though he has publicly stated his wish to play in the English Premier League. But his meager playing time and unimpressive performance in the 2006 World Cup have hurt his stock, and it seems European teams have put Park off their radar for now.[citation needed]
