Barcelona could reunite with former youth talent, the ‘Korean Messi’, in summer friendly | OneFootball

After visiting the USA for the last several years for their pre-season tour, FC Barcelona will have a changed destination this summer, as they will be visiting Asia. The Blaugranes are expected to play four matches there, two of which will be played in South Korea, while the other two are expected to be played in Japan.

Their opponents for one of the matches in South Korea have already been confirmed, i.e., FC Seoul. However, for the second match, their opponent team is yet to be confirmed, with one of two teams likely to get this honor, i.e., Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors and Suwon Samsung Bluewings.

Both of these clubs will be looking to get this honor of playing against a top European team, but the Blaugranes will find it easier to relate to Jeonbuk, as Mundo Deportivo notes that they have a familiar face playing in their ranks, i.e., Seung-woo Lee, the now 27-year-old player who was once nicknamed ‘the Korean Messi’.

Lee has been playing in his home country for the last three years now, and this season, joined the best team in K-League, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, who have won the league title seven times in the last ten years.

Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images

Early in his career, he caught the attention of Barcelona, especially as he excelled in the 2010 Danone Nations Cup, a tournament he ended as the top-scorer. Following these exploits, he got his chance to join La Masia in 2011, where he continued to show glimpses of his quality and talent, and established himself as one of the most promising players in Asia.

However, his career took an unfortunate turn as a FIFA sanction prevented him from making an official appearance for three years, at least the time he turned 18 years of age in January 2016.

Still, Barcelona kept their faith in him, and he was first registered with the Juvenil A team, before making his way to Barcelona B in March 2016. However, he was unable to establish himself in the first team.

Looking to take the next step in his career, he joined the Italian side Hellas Verona in August 2017. But following his team’s relegation to Serie B and lacking much prominence, he moved to Belgium with Sint-Truidense VV, but his fortunes did not improve much there either. He then moved to the Portuguese side Portimonense SC, and failed to shine there as well.

In December 2021, he returned back to his home country, where his fortunes have improved as he became a key player for Suwon FC, before joining his current side Jeonbuk in July 2024.