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"Thanks to Javier Aguirre, the coach of Mallorca, I am also benefiting."

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) coach Luis Enrique has expressed his gratitude to the former mentor of Lee Kang-in (23, PSG).

"Enrique said that Lee Kang-in has improved a lot with Aguirre," Spain's Copé reported on Feb. 22 (KST).

According to the media, Enrique was asked about the Copa del Rey final between Mallorca and Athletic Bilbao during a personal broadcast on streaming platform Twitch. "Everyone thought Real Sociedad would be in the final instead of Mallorca. But look what happened. Mallorca is a good team. They have a great coach, and they're a very interesting team," he said, predicting a hard-fought match.

The name of Lee Kang-in, who played for Mallorca, also came up. "He has really good things to say about Aguirre," Enrique said. And I think he has improved a lot thanks to him," Enrique said.

"(Aguirre) is the coach who taught him that attacking is good, but you also have to be solid in defense. He's taken that to heart, and other coaches are benefiting from that," he smiles.

As Enrique says, Lee has grown immensely in Mallorca. He broke into the European scene in 2011 when he signed for Valencia's youth academy. He stood out from an early age and made his professional debut in December 2017, followed by his La Liga debut the following season.

It looked like he had a solid future ahead of him, but the reality was different: he was given little opportunity under Marcelino, and the same was true under Javi Garcia.

Lee wanted to go out on loan to gain experience, but that was not an option. Eventually, the Valencia board, led by chairman Peter Lim, decided to release him as a free agent in 2021, citing the need to secure a non-EU quota.

However, Lee's talent could not be hidden. Once considered Valencia's top prospect, he spread his wings in Mallorca.

After an adjustment period in 2021-2022, Lee really took off last season. He became the first South Korean player to reach double-digit offensive points in La Liga in 2022-2023 with six goals and six assists in the league, and his partnership with striker Bedat Murki quickly became an ace.

In particular, Lee showed his talent by playing multiple positions. 바카라사이트 Mallorca also improved their defense in order to survive as an underdog. His defense and activity, which were criticized as weaknesses, became one of his strengths.

His physicality has allowed him to develop into a complete midfielder, earning him a nomination for La Liga Team of the season and two Player of the Month awards. His meteoric rise led to Atletico Madrid actively pursuing him, while Newcastle United, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Aston Villa, Real Sociedad, Real Betis, and others also expressed interest.

The final winner was PSG. Director Luis Campos personally pushed for the signing of Lee Kang-In and won the competition. The transfer fee was €22 million (approximately KRW 31.3 billion).

Later, Campos said, "We made a lot of effort to get him. We couldn't pay more than a certain transfer fee," he said, adding, "I like him a lot from a sporting point of view. He fits well with what Enrique wants to do," he said.

It is the best deal in Mallorca's history. While 20 percent of the transfer fee, or €4.4 million, went to Lee, Mallorca earned more than €17 million from the sale of the player they signed for free two years ago. Mallorca have never made more money from a player sale.

For PSG, the signing of Lee was also a success. He has shown his versatility by playing on both the left and right flanks, as well as as a flanker and central midfielder. He struggled with injuries in his early years, but after returning from the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou with a gold medal, he scored his debut goal in the UEFA Champions League (UCL).

Since then, Lee has continued to rack up offensive points and become a regular starter. Local media, as well as PSG seniors such as Jeremy Lotang and Didier Dormy, have been vocal in calling for Lee to start. "He is small, but he can do everything," said Enrique. He can play up front, back, inside and on the flanks, he can defend and score. He's a complete player. He's our big signing," he said.

Of course, Lee still faces fierce competition for a starting spot. He's not the only one, as PSG has other outstanding players such as Bittinha, Ousmane Dembele, and Fabian Luis, but his versatility and genius have earned him Enrique's trust.

After returning from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) 2023 Asian Cup in Qatar earlier this year, things didn't go so well. After missing a game with a stomach bug, Lee started two consecutive league games, but failed to make an impact. Against Rennes, he was substituted at the start of the second half. Against Monaco, he came on in the 41st minute of the second half.

However, Lee is reclaiming his place with his performances. He set up Kylian Mbappe's goal with a sharp pass in the second leg of the UCL round of 16 against Sociedad, and then scored his fourth goal of the season against Montpellier with a fantastic left-footed curling effort. For his efforts, Lee was named to the Ligue 1 Team of the Week as well as the top five goals of the week.

In terms of marketing, Lee is also PSG's poster boy. His jersey has sold as much as Mbappe's, and a PSG flagship store has opened in Seoul. Ligue 1 noted that PSG had acquired a "true superstar," and PSG Talk likened Lee to a golden nugget.