Lee Kang-in is likely to leave Mallorca this summer. Manchester United are also believed to have made inquiries.
Spain’s ‘Relevo’ reported on July 20 (KST), “Many teams, including Atletico Madrid, are interested in Lee. However, his future is still undecided. Man United have also made inquiries to the Mallorca side. One of Lee’s idols was Man United’s Park Ji-Sung. In any case, he will leave Mallorca this summer,” the report said.
Lee grew up in Valencia’s youth academy. His youth and early professional years were not bad. He made his first-team debut in the 2018 Copa del Rey. At the time, he was 17 years, 8 months, and 11 days old, making him the youngest foreign debutant in the club’s history. However, what followed was a disappointment. Valencia didn’t give him much playing time.
Eventually, Lee decided to leave the club. He refused to renew his contract and headed to Mallorca. Since joining Mallorca ahead of last season, Lee has gained experience in both the starting and substitute roles and has become a key player for coach Javier Aguirre this season.
Currently, Lee has made 33 appearances in Spanish La Liga. As his playing time has increased significantly, so has his impact on the team. So far, he has six goals and four assists in the league, giving him double-digit attacking points. He was recently nominated for La Liga Player of the Month for April for his outstanding performances.
His market value has also increased. According to soccer statistics website Transfermarkt, Lee is currently valued at €15 million. When he first joined Mallorca, his price tag was 6 million euros (about 8.5 billion won), then doubled to 12 million euros (about 17 billion won). Then it increased again to 15 million euros.
Other teams have also been linked with Lee, most notably Atleti, who have been linked with him since January. At that time, negotiations did not progress due to opposition from Mallorca. Until recently, Atletico were reportedly the favorite, but they are not financially rich enough to pay the €17 million buyout. 안전놀이터
As a result, the relatively deep-pocketed English Premier League (EPL) is the next likely destination. Aston Villa appears to be the frontrunner. Manchester United has also been mentioned. The Red Devils currently have Bruno Fernandez, Christian Eriksen, Marcel Xavier (on loan), and Donny van der Beek in the same position as Lee.
As Relevo notes, this is a team that Park Ji-Sung has played for in the past. Park made his mark at PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands) before pulling on a United shirt. He played for the club for almost seven years, starting in 2005, and was Alex Ferguson’s choice for every important game. In addition to Lee, Kim Min-jae is also currently being linked to United.