Can Lee Kang-in (24, Paris Saint-Germain) possibly not play a single second in the finals?

Paris Saint-Germain will compete for the championship trophy against Inter Milan in the 2024-25 UEFA Champions League final, which will be held at 4 a.m. (Korea time) on June 1 at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany.

Paris Saint-Germain finished as runners-up in 2020 but has yet to win a Champions League title. The only Champions League victory by a French league team was Marseille in 1993. Inter Milan, with three titles (64, 65, 2010), is challenging for its fourth title after 15 years.

There is heightened interest in whether Lee Kang-in will play. PSG has already claimed the Ligue 1 title and the Coupe de France, achieving a 'double.' If PSG wins, Lee will become the first Korean player to achieve the glory of a 'treble.'

Before the decisive match, Lee Kang-in expressed his passion for victory in an interview with the PSG website on the 29th, stating, "The journey to the finals itself holds great significance. I want to maintain my focus until the end and finish the season with a championship."

However, it is unfortunate that Lee Kang-in might not play in the finals again. He did not receive a chance to play in PSG's final Ligue 1 match as well. This season, Lee contributed with 6 goals and 5 assists for PSG but left without a smile.

The misfortune continued. Lee Kang-in was once again excluded from the starting lineup in the Coupe de France final, where victory was at stake. He was on the substitute bench but did not play a single second.

Manager Luis Enrique did not consider Lee Kang-in even when the team had already scored three goals in the first half and was leading 3-0, rotating in Hernandez, Berchiche, Gonçalo Ramos, Maffeo, and Zaire-Emery in the second half.

Unfortunately, Lee Kang-in's name was absent from the starting lineup projected by 'WhoScored.com' for PSG's Champions League final. In a 4-3-3 formation, PSG is expected to field Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Ousmane Dembélé, Gonçalo Ramos, Luis, Vitinha, Neves, Mendes, Marquinhos, Achraf Hakimi, and Gianluigi Donnarumma.

It is not the first time that manager Enrique has ignored Lee Kang-in. In the worst-case scenario, Lee might experience the victory trophy only three times while not being able to play as a key player, creating a bitter situation.

Lee Kang-in's situation brings to mind Park Ji-sung, the first Korean player to win a Champions League title. Park Ji-sung's Manchester United drew 1-1 with Chelsea in the 2008 UEFA Champions League final and won 6-5 in a penalty shootout to kiss the trophy. He became the first Korean player to win the Champions League, but faced the humiliation of not appearing on the player roster in the most crucial final.

It was an incomprehensible decision by Sir Alex Ferguson, the Manchester United manager at the time. Park was a key player for Manchester United, having started in the quarterfinal series against Roma and the semifinal series against Barcelona. In particular, in the second leg of the semifinal against Barcelona, he effectively contained Lionel Messi, earning 'Man of the Match' honors and leading Manchester United to the final.

At that time, it was taken for granted that Park would start, both in Korea and abroad. However, Sir Ferguson's choice was not Park but Owen Hargreaves. Park was not even on the substitute bench and was deeply hurt.

Years later, Sir Ferguson said, "Park Ji-sung was a player who played a great role. Excluding him from the final roster was a very difficult decision" and apologized to Park several times. Ultimately, Manchester United won the championship, so it would not be fair to criticize Ferguson unduly.

Can Lee Kang-in confidently step onto the Champions League stage, contribute to the team, and win? Many football fans are expected to lose sleep as they keenly watch whether Lee will play.

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