Opinions continue to be raised that Wolverhampton Wanderers could sell Hwang Hee-chan, who ranked third in the club’s all-time transfer fee. France’s prestigious Marseille is eyeing him.
It was on the 5th that Hwang Hee-chan was rumored to be transferred. French media “Lekif” reported that “Korean national striker Hwang Hee-chan was included in the list of strikers set by the board of Marseille,” adding, “Coach Roberto de Gervi also confirmed this.” It was reported that Marseille was eyeing Hwang Hee-chan.
Marseille is the best rival team of PSG and France, where Lee Kang-in plays, and the game between the two teams is so fierce that it is called Le Clasique. Marseille has lifted several trophies, including 13 wins in the French Ligue 1 and 10 wins in the French FA Cup, the Coupe de France, and won the UEFA Champions League in the 1992-1993 season, where even rival PSG could not play.
Recently, however, the team has failed to secure a championship. The most recent championship was the trophy at the 2011-12 League Cup. The French Ligue 1 championship also needs to advance to the 2009-10 season. In the 2023-24 season, the team ranked eighth, failing to secure a berth in the European competition.
Hwang Hee-chan is not the only player that Marseille wants to recruit. Media reported that Marseille is also targeting Manchester United striker Mason Greenwood. However, the competition to recruit Greenwood is fierce. There is also a news that Italian Lazio have already made a bid for Greenwood. If Marseille fails to recruit Greenwood, it is possible that he will focus on Hwang Hee-chan.
The possibility of Wolverhampton selling is slim. Wolverhampton also increased his weekly salary in December last year when he signed a new contract with Hwang Hee-chan, who has a contract remaining until 2026, to extend his contract until 2028. Even if he sells him right away with a long contract period, he is expected to ask for a large transfer fee.
The possibility of a transfer is small, but if the transfer is made, the situation of Wolverhampton will be greatly affected. British media “Trival Football” said, “Wolverhampton will be reluctant to sell him, but Hwang Hee-chan’s transfer fee will be huge, so Wolverhampton may accept the offer to ease cash worries,” claiming that Hwang Hee-chan could be sold due to the team’s poor financial situation.
Marseille’s interest in recruiting Hwang Hee-chan has been watched by the board of directors, but it is largely influenced by de Zerby, the new coach of Marseille. De Zerby has been the manager of Brighton and Hove Albion in the Premier League from September 2022 to 2023-24 and watched Hwang Hee-chan’s performance in the Premier League.
De Zerby said he would step down as manager of Brighton at the end of the 2023-24 season. He was nominated for the position of Bayern Munich manager and many other clubs offered to him, but his choice was Marseille. On his official website on April 29, Marcéu announced that he signed a three-year contract with de Zerby.
“De Zerby likes Hwang Hee-chan’s strong style and has faced Brighton several times,” Lekif said. De Zerby has experience leading the growth of Japanese winger Kaoru Mitoma at Brighton. Like Mitoma, he seems to be fascinated by Hwang Hee-chan, who is capable of both wingers and midfielders.
Considering Hwang Hee-chan’s performance in the 2023-2024 season, it is natural that there are rumors of a transfer with the prestigious French team Marseille.
It was during his time in Salzburg that Hwang Hee-chan began to make his name known on the European stage. He adapted to the Austrian stage by scoring double-digit points from the 2016-2017 season and also scored 13 goals in the 2017-18 season, showing a stable performance. He seemed to play on a season-long loan to Hamburg, Germany, in the 2018-19 season, but he returned to Salzburg without taking the opportunity.
The 2019-2020 season marked Hwang Hee-chan across Europe. Salzburg secured a spot in the 2019-2020 UEFA Champions League and was in Group E with Genk of Liverpool, Naples, and Belgium.
The match against Liverpool was the dominant one. In the second group qualifying match against Liverpool in October 2019, he opened the goal for Liverpool by beating Virgil van Dijk, a second-ranked center back in the Ballon d’Or, with his personal talent in the 39th minute. He shocked many soccer fans as a striker who beat the world’s best center back at the time. 메이저사이트
However, it was not good after that. In July 2020, he moved to Leipzig, Germany, but it was a virtual failure. He seemed to be going through a tough time, but he left on loan at Wolverhampton after a season, and this was a stroke of God. He was recognized for his ability at Wolverhampton and signed him completely after a season.
After two seasons of adaptation at Wolverhampton, Hwang Hee-chan burst his potential in the 2023-24 season and has been crowned a player with transfer offers from several teams.
Hwang Hee-chan was able to play in the 2023-2024 season because of his role change. Coach Gary O’Neill, who took over at Wolverhampton last summer, used Hwang Hee-chan as a striker over his main position, the left winger, and Hwang Hee-chan showed off his determination by focusing only on scoring. As a striker, he also maximized his strengths by showing a wide range of activities that moved to the side.
Hwang Hee-chan has a lot of contract left, but there are reports that the transfer fee may be lower than expected. According to “Molinho News,” which delivers the news of Wolverhampton, Marseille will sell striker Iliman Ndiaye for 16.9 million pounds (about 30 billion won) and use the money to recruit Hwang Hee-chan.
This amount is not enough due to Hwang Hee-chan’s transfer fee. In the Premier League, this amount is ridiculously small, and Wolverhampton is unlikely to sell a striker with four years left on his contract for this amount.