Song Chong-Gug

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Personal information
Song Chong-Gug

Full name	Song Chong-Gug
Date of birth	20 February 1979
Place of birth	Busan, South Korea
Height	178cm
Nickname	Cookie
Position	midfielder
Club information
Current club	Suwon Samsung Bluewings
Professional clubs*
Years	Club	Apps (goals)
2001-02 2002-05 2005-	Busan Icons Feyenoord Suwon Bluewings	33 (4) 53 (2) 9 (0)
National team**
2000-	Korea Republic	52 (3)
* Professional club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 2005. ** National team caps and goals correct as of 23 June 2006.

Song Chong-Gug (송종국, born February 20, 1979 in Busan) is a Korean football player and midfielder for Suwon Samsung Bluewings and the Korean national team.

Song is a pacy player noted for his exceptional versatility of being able to play different positions, mostly right wingback or defensive midfielder and occasionally at central defense. His experience in the Netherlands and great stamina are also among his assets. He is also noted for his calm temperament and expertise in set pieces.

[edit] Career

From 2001 to 2002, Song played in the K-league for his hometown team Busan Icons, now known as Busan I'Park, before he became famous.

In 2002 Song became a superstar virtually overnight when he played in 2002 Football World Cup, and contributed greatly to Korea's victories against Poland, Portugal, Italy, and Spain.

Song was a virtual unknown to most South Korea fans prior in 2001. Song had actually made his international debut against Macedonia in June 2000 under Huh Jung-moo, Hiddink's predecessor, but had not yet developed into the player we know today. When Guus Hiddink arrived to take over the reins, he received mass criticism from the Korean public when he choose the inexperienced Song in Korea' starting line-up for the 2001 Confederations Cup, to replace the popular but injured captain Hong Myung Bo for the tournament. Under Guus Hiddink's expert guidance Song developed into a key player that was always one of the first names to go on Hiddink's teamsheet during the 2002 World Cup.

One of the reasons Hiddink rated Song so highly was due to his uncanny ability to shut down opposing players - against the highly fancied Portugal, Song was deployed as a wingback and successfully marked a (although injured) Luís Figo out of the game during Korea's group match, greatly reducing the threat to Korea's defence. Ironically, Song started his professional career as a right winger and Luís Figo was his greatest idol.

After the 2002 World Cup, Song left Korea to play for Dutch giants Feyenoord. He was an important defender for Feyenoord and spent about three years in Rotterdam, playing in 53 matches, and scoring two goals and seven assists. To this day he is still highly-rated, and would probably still be at Feyenoord if he didn't see eye-to-eye with his new manager Ruud Gullit, who ironically resigned from his position in 2005 after an unsuccessful season.

After leaving Feyenoord, Song returned to Korea in 2005 to play in the K-league with Suwon Samsung Bluewings, one of the best football clubs in Asia. Star players who also play for this team include midfielder Kim Nam-Il and goalkeeper Lee Woon-Jae, who were both important players during the 2002 World Cup.

Song has had a left ankle injury, which prevented him from making a comeback in 2005. Although Song was not able to recover as fast as he hoped, and only was able to play in late March 2006, prospect of his recovery was enough to guarantee his place in the South Korean squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

[edit] Private life

In 2003, Song married Kim Jung-Ah to the surprise of many of his fans after dating Kim since April 2001. Prior to the marriage, he had been linked with multiple celebrities including Lee Jin, a member of a Korean girl band Fin.K.L..^[1] He presented a bigger surprise three years later by getting divorced. A devout Christian with a sincere personality, he is one of a few Korean athletes to get a divorce. He cited busy schedule as a reason for divorce as he had nearly no time to be with his wife especially after he transferred to Feyenoord.

In November 2006, actress Park Yun-Soo has revealed that they have been in a relationship for 18 months and are preparing for his second marriage. They will tie the knot on December 17, 2006.^[2]

[edit] External links

	South Korea squad - 2002 FIFA World Cup Fourth Place
1 Lee Woon‑Jae \| 2 Hyun Young‑Min \| 3 Choi Sung‑Yong \| 4 Choi Jin‑Cheul \| 5 Kim Nam‑Il \| 6 Yoo Sang‑Chul \| 7 Kim Tae‑Young \| 8 Choi Tae‑Uk \| 9 Seol Ki‑Hyeon \| 10 Lee Young‑Pyo \| 11 Choi Yong‑Soo \| 12 Kim Byung‑Ji \| 13 Lee Eul‑Yong \| 14 Lee Chun‑Soo \| 15 Lee Min‑Sung \| 16 Cha Du‑Ri \| 17 Yoon Jung‑Hwan \| 18 Hwang Sun‑Hong \| 19 Ahn Jung‑Hwan \| 20 Hong Myung‑Bo \| 21 Park Ji‑Sung \| 22 Song Chong‑Gug \| 23 Choi Eun‑Sung \| Coach: Hiddink

	South Korea squad - 2006 FIFA World Cup
1 Lee Woon‑Jae \| 2 Kim Young‑Chul \| 3 Kim Dong‑Jin \| 4 Choi Jin‑Cheul \| 5 Kim Nam‑Il \| 6 Kim Jin‑Kyu \| 7 Park Ji‑Sung \| 8 Kim Doo‑Hyun \| 9 Ahn Jung‑Hwan \| 10 Park Chu‑Young \| 11 Seol Ki‑Hyeon \| 12 Lee Young‑Pyo \| 13 Lee Eul‑Yong \| 14 Lee Chun‑Soo \| 15 Baek Ji‑Hoon \| 16 Chung Kyung‑Ho \| 17 Lee Ho \| 18 Kim Sang‑Sik \| 19 Cho Jae‑Jin \| 20 Kim Yong‑Dae \| 21 Kim Young‑Kwang \| 22 Song Chong‑Gug \| 23 Cho Won‑Hee \| Coach: Advocaat