Lee Kang-in, had a chance to start. He played in the left midfielder in 4-4-2. He scored in the 39th minute when his team led 2-1, slightly changed the direction of the ball with his right foot at the front of the penalty area. 

▲ Lee Kang-in scored his debut goal in Primera Liga.

On the same day, Lee played a special role by getting involved in all three goals for the team. With Valencia giving up a goal just one minute into the first half, Lee Kang-in made a sharp cross from the left side of the penalty area in the 30th minute. The defender cleared the ball, but the ball went to Maxi Gomez, who scored overhead kick as the equalizer. Four minutes later, a pass that Lee Kang-in gave to Daniel Parejo led to Gomez's header reversal following across.

Valencia took a 3-1 lead with Lee Kang-in's goal but gave up goals in the 21st and 24th minutes to tie the game 3-3. Lee Kang-in was replaced by Gonzalo Gedes in the 28th minute. Valencia is now ranking 13th among the total 20 teams, having one win, three draws, and two losses.

▲ Lee Kang-in set the record for the youngest foreign player who scores in Primera Liga.

Born on Feb. 19, 2001, Lee Kang-in scored his debut goal in the Spanish Primera Liga at the age of 18 and 218, beating Momo Sisoko to set the record for the youngest foreign scorer ever for a Valencia club. He also became the second South Korean player to score in the Primera Liga following Park Chu-young, who played for Celta Vigo in the 2012-2013 season. Lee is also the third-youngest Valencia player to score in the Primera Liga, the Valencia club said on its website, "The only players who scored before Lee are Juan Mena and Fernando Gomez."

▲ Lee Kang-in won the golden ball in U-20 World Cup as well.

In June, Lee competed at the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland, where he even won a Golden Ball for his contribution to the South Korean team's runner-up finish, along with his two-year-old older brothers. He is now one of the most promising young players not only in South Korea but also in the world.

September 27th, 2019

by Seungwon Shin