“This is an achievement not achieved alone, but together with colleagues.”
“Captain” Lee Seung-won (Gangwon), who won the Bronze Ball, had a humble feeling. The under-20 (U-20) national team, led by coach Kim Eun-joong, played against Israel at the La Plata Stadium in La Plata, Argentina on the 12th (Korean time) in the 3rd and 4th place of the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup. lost 1-3 in Kim Eun-jung-ho aimed for the second-highest 3rd place in history, but ended the tournament in 4th place due to poor stamina. The best performance of Korean football ever was the runner-up in the Polish tournament in 2019.메이저놀이터
Lee Seung-won scored a penalty kick to tie the game 1-1 in the 24th minute of the first half. He scored with a bold Panenka kick. With the goal that day, Lee Seung-won posted his 7th attack point (3 goals – 4 assists) in the tournament. It is the record for the most attack points in the FIFA men’s competition by a Korean player, surpassing the 6 (2 goals, 4 assists) of Lee Kang-in (Mallorca), who became the best player (Golden Ball) at the 2019 Polish tournament just before achieving runner-up. Lee Seung-won led Korea’s propaganda by recording the first goal in the first match against France in this tournament, as well as scoring attack points with performances like Altoran at every turn. In particular, the sharp set-piece kick shone. He made 4 assists like this.
In the first match of the group stage against France, which was 0-0, in the 22nd minute of the first half, he scored the first goal by receiving a pass from Kim Yong-hak during a storm counterattack. In the 19th minute of the second half, when the score was 1-0, he kicked a corner kick from the left side and helped Lee Young-joon’s winning goal. Lee Seung-won scored an attacking point in all matches except for the third group match (0-0 draw) against Gambia, in which Korea failed to score a goal. Lee Seung-won, who delivered help in the second group match against Honduras, the round of 16 match against Ecuador, and the quarterfinal match against Nigeria, even scored from a penalty kick in the quarterfinal match against Italy.
On this day, Korea lost to Israel 1-3, conceding consecutive goals in the second half after Seung-Won Lee’s goal, and finished in 4th place, but Seung-Won Lee left a new history. Lee Seung-won received the Bronze Ball and was recognized as the third best player in the tournament. In the history of Korean soccer, Lee Seung-won is the third male national team player to win an individual award in a FIFA-sponsored competition. It is the first time that Ulsan Hyundai coach Hong Myung-bo, who led Korea’s semifinals in the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, received the Bronze Ball. Lee Kang-in (Mallorca), who led Korea to runner-up in the Polish tournament in 2019, received the Golden Ball, which corresponds to the best player. Cesare Casadei (Italy), who scored 7 goals, won the Golden Ball, and Alan Maturo (Uruguay) won the Silver Ball.
Lee Seung-won said in an interview after finishing the 3rd and 4th place matches, “It was a difficult journey for 1 year and 6 months. I am grateful to the players who did well and the coaches who helped me with good guidance in the process of getting to the semifinals.” I do,” he said. He continued, “It is an honor to receive this award on the stage of the World Cup.” He also gave all the credit to his teammates, saying, “It was thanks to the sacrifice and help of my colleagues that I was able to bring about such good results.”
Lee Seung-won wore the captain’s armband and participated in the match. He led the ‘one team’ by holding a heavy center on and off the field. Leadership shined. Although he missed the final, he showed himself not to give up until the end. Lee Seung-won said, “Today, before the game with my teammates, I said, ‘If there is anything that has accumulated over the past time, personally or as a team, let’s clear it up and come out.’ “Let’s go,” he said. “This tournament was a good experience and a stepping stone for all the players,” he said, promising the next one, “if we work hard for development in each team, we will meet again.”
Lee Seung-won was not satisfied with the results of this tournament. He promised that in the future he would rise to a higher national team and jump even higher. Lee Seung-won said, “I think I felt with my body that there are many really good players in the world. There are many things I learned while bumping into them.” I want to become a player who can contribute to football,” he said with strength.