Song Chong-Gug
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- This is a Korean name; the family name is Song.
| Song Chong-Gug | ||
 |
||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Song Chong-Gug | |
| Date of birth | February 20, 1979 | |
| Place of birth | Busan, South Korea | |
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | |
| Playing position | midfielder/defender | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | |
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 2001-02 2002-05 2005- |
 Busan Icons FeyenoordSuwon Samsung Bluewings |
45 (4) 53 (2) 82 (1) |
| National team2 | ||
| 2000- | Korea Republic | 57 (3) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
||
| Song Chong-Gug | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Song Chong-Gug (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.
Contents |
[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 a defender for Feyenoord most of the time, but played a couple of matches on the midfield. On the midfield, he played his best matches for Feyenoord. Song spent about three years in Rotterdam, playing in 53 matches, and scoring two goals and seven assists. When Feyenood hired a new manager, Song never managed to impress him. Thus he left the club, despite the fact he was very popular and one of the most talented right backs in the Netherlands 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.
Song Chong-Gug has recently been linked with a move to English Premier League club Fulham FC.
[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..[3] 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.
On December 17, 2006, he married actress and model Park Yun-Soo after an 18-month relationship.[4] The wedding was held privately in front of 100 family and friends. Song became a father six months after the wedding.[5]
[edit] External links
[edit] References
|
|||||||
|
|||||||
|
|||||||
|
|||||
