DOHA: South Korea’s Lee Chung-Yong has ended his overseas adventure with Bolton Wanderers and shorter stints with Crystal Palace and Bochum to return to his country.
Playing for Ulsan and in one of the first leagues to operate during the COVID-19 crisis will in some ways will give the 31-year-old a new life.
“It feels special to come back and play on home soil,” Lee told FIFA.com. “It means a lot for the K League to resume while most of the rest of the world’s leagues are shut down. The situation here, that we kicked off again, gives us some sense of pride. We, Koreans, have a sense of community, which helped lead us to unite against this crisis.”
Lee made the point to mention that the combination of the public’s willingness to follow governmental guidelines and the devotion of medical staffs across the country resulted in the return of football to the peninsula: “We are lucky indeed.”
Being one of the only leagues in operation brings with it an entirely new level of worldwide attention, so how are he and the players handling that?
“The attention helps us focus even more on our football, both in training sessions and matches so that we can bring some joy to people by playing quality football. We want to showcase the best we have to offer.”
That is certainly evident in Ulsan’s play in the last two match days, highlighted by an incredible comeback victory in Suwon after being 2-0 down to the Bluewings.
