Lee Hyun-ju; the next South Korean star in the making?
Name: Lee Hyun-ju
Date of Birth: 03/02/07 (Age 20)
Physicality: 172 cm & 67 kg
Position: Left Attacking Midfielder
Current Club: On loan to SV Wehen Wiesbaden (Prev. Bayern Munchen II)
International: South Korea U23
Who is this raw talent competing in Germany’s second tier?
The 20-year-old was first identified by the Bavarians at Pohang Steelers, the same Korean club that developed the “Korean guy,” Hwang Hee-chan of Wolverhampton. However, what differentiates Hyun-ju is that he was able to attract European attention right after graduating the Pohang’s youth system — afterward, he was called up to the senior team. When the reports turned out that the German record champions were interested in Hyun-ju, many Korean supporters expected his confrontation in a new, competitive environment to be a somewhat — not so easy path.
Quite frankly he made a direct promotion to the Bayern II squad competing at the fourth tier of Germany, rather than spending some time adapting to the European atmosphere at the U19s. There was definently something that caught the eye of the confident staff that has decided to make this move. At that point of period when I was monitoring Hyun-ju’s growth, I had a conscious thought that; he was just a youth player at the age of 19 leaving his safe zone in which Regionalliga looked like an evident challenge for him. This is where Hyun-ju directly paper cuts through my concern, it was hard to deny the fact that he barely took 7 months to completely influence Bayern II.
Actively participating in 20 total games at the Regionalliga Bayern in the 2022 season, he was able to score 9 goals and set up 2 assists for his teammates. Thanks to his staggering performance in Germany — he was called to represent South Korea in the U23 national team, which really throttled his growth as an aspiring star. When his loan to Bayern came to an end, the German club chose to fully transfer Hyun-ju. Given his conditions back then, when he just started his career in Germany, his massive growth and development as a young player is massive; which clearly convinced the Bavarians to develop the talented Korean.
At this particular time, there were rumors that Hyun-ju would start to train (along with his teammate Yusuf Kabadayı) with the first team during the pre-season, backed by the evidence that his name wasn’t included in the Bayern II training roster. The potential happening was more exciting to the Koreans, due to the fact that the former Napoli center-back — Kim Min-jae’s transfer was being officialized. However, it came to a quick conclusion when the newly promoted SV Wehen Wiesbaden announced their loan transfer of Lee Hyun-ju.
“With Hyunju we have gained an exciting offensive player. He has strong technical skills and will benefit our game with his creativity, dynamism and explosiveness,” said Paul Fernie — sporting director at the Red and Blacks.
In fact, there were no disappointments in the Korean netizens’ reactions to the transfer. I personally thought that it was a great move for him and the former club as well. Though it surely is a big jump for a young Asian prospect who has just finished his year at the Regionalliga, then directly transitioning to the 2. Bundesliga — a high-grade professional competition in Europe. The question lies; since July till now, how far has the 20-year-old progressed?
So far, Lee Hyun-ju is considered an influential player by the Red and Blacks — but how?
Under the management of Markus Kauczinski; Hyun-ju often starts as a left attacking midfielder in a 3421 or 3412 formation. So far, he has started 12 games out of 13 appearances, topped with 14 total matches in the 2. Bundesliga. Having in mind that he is on a loan, along with the frame of a youngster with considerably decent potential —it shows that the German manager has invested trust in him, as proven by his continuous use of the Korean.
Hyun-ju has scored 3 goals so far in his campaign in the second division, which is not the most eye-catching performance but evidently a solid progression to his adaption to the new stage. Something that should be emphasized is not based on what is recorded in his statistics, but on the effectiveness he offers in the pitch. As Hyun-ju obtains more experience and playing time before the end of the loan, he could become a solid contributor at the Red and Blacks. For instance, SV Wehen Wiesbaden is currently positioned at 8th on the ladder (as of today, 11–29), they seem to confront a rocky start — but the hope for promotion is still there.
Standing at approximately 172 meters, Hyun-ju possesses a body closer to mesomorphic rather than being slim. Though, just like any other player with an under-sized build, he does face difficulties when confronting opponents with a stronger frame and taller height. But what switches the image is that Hyun-ju has a low center of gravity which allows him to stick to the ball, despite being pressured by the opponents. It is seen in many matches where a lot of players attempt to mark him — but, isn’t really rewarding in most cases.
As a small player; he is swift and very reactive, so he often makes a decision right after receiving the ball on his feet, providing less time for the opponent to counteract. When Hyun-ju continues to progress with the ball, he benefits from the well-built lower core and the low center of gravity, as previously mentioned — where he doesn’t get pushed but rather drags his mark or even gets by with pace. This tends to happen a lot, which eventually forces the opposer to clash with him so that the ball doesn’t advance further — which leads to a foul resulting in a potential yellow card, and being able to attract fouls provides game-changing opportunities in important times.
So his lack of size isn’t a con that should impose the Korean to transform his style or gameplay. On a good note, watching his game best reminds me of Bryan Zaragoza, a Spanish winger at Granada CF who is wanted by many English clubs at the moment. They both look like they have developed a solution to effectively protect the ball, sort of — or enhanced their on-the-ball to avoid being shoved. The two players are very alike in pros where they are able to carry the ball with balance, providing nutritious passes and creating solo chances.
Due to his explosiveness and high pace in both short and long distances, Hyun-ju particularly excels in evading pressure and escaping tight spaces — showing the tendency to drag/attract players to him. This particular act pulls more and more players of the opposition to be invested above the middle block, essentially decreasing the numbers positioned to defend their final third. Hyun-ju has great knowledge of when to time his first touch, allowing him to make either one of the three options according to a variety of sequences:
- Giving an immediate pass to a teammate at the same location
- Progressing the ball (either directly/horizontally) in a favorable location to deploy the ball, or creating the chance alone
- Completely killing the tempo, then dueling the marker with speed in an unexpected timing
Whichever option he takes, it is executed quickly without hesitation. Therefore it is hard to see Hyun-ju losing the ball due to false decision-making or losing focus unless he is challenged by a group of players. Another point to mention is; that the 20-year-old is willing to consistently check the surroundings, making sure he is in the ideal position to receive the ball or when the opponent is ahead to confront him — aided by his wide vision. This is indeed a trait that is often seen by many great wingers at the top level. Perhaps, it is not wrong to say that Hyun-ju possesses a high football IQ, as he looks to locate himself off the ball according to his teammates’ behavior, and where the ball is being possessed. The Korean has a deep understanding of what the manager wants tactically, too.
When it comes to assessing a winger, or any position in the offense; it is necessary to look up to the number of options or opportunities one is able to produce along with the use of creativity. In this part, Hyun-ju is a prime example of a playmaking midfielder — making constant action to provide attacking routes to his teammates, or pave the way to the goal himself. His incredible passing game needs to be mentioned as well. The distance does not matter for him, because he is able to deliver passes with appropriate power and intensity. Hyun-ju never seems to lack in one-touch passes when he is engaged in a link-up play under a high tempo.
Whether in or outside of the box, the former Korean international seems fairly composed. He has the ability to shoot and occasionally cross with power with either foot, dominantly with right — but lacks accuracy in some situations, if not given the open space to do so. This is one of the few weaknesses the youngster needs to develop if he wants to take his game to a higher level. Interestingly, a lot of clubs of 2. Bundesliga seems to be aware of Hyun-ju’s presence on the pitch, especially with the sharpness and the amount of attacking points he can produce on the ball. Hence, it is why they look to lock him up so that he is separated from the freedom to create the magic. Because evidently, having only one marker, perhaps even two is not enough to fully guard Hyun-ju — due to his advanced strengths at individual duels.
On the other hand, it is true that Hyun-ju does not stand out defensively. However, he does have the willingness to actively contribute during the transition, either quickly confronting the opponent ball possessor to input pressure or immediately locating himself under the defensive structure of Wiesbaden (3421 -> 541/442). The Korean shifts to defense with a mediocre pace in both short and long distances. He does burst with better acceleration in considerably shorter distances, and doing so shortens the opponent’s options on the ball. Due to Wiesbaden’s primary formations being operated on a 3 center-back, it does burden the attacking midfielders on the side with defensive responsibilities while the wingbacks relocate to the defensive formation.
For a fact, Hyun-ju occasionally gets rolled over when facing duels with an aggressive response by the opponent. The same happens with clubs deploying groups of players to tighten Hyun-ju’s freedom on the ball, leading to an extensive and confrontational mark of the Korean. Since he is evidently a player who gets fouled a lot, it raises the risk of potentially getting injured — which does worry me a bit. But he hasn’t had issues with any major injuries so far, and hopefully, his clean history will continue in the future as well. Some players might overreact with emotion when facing these consequences, but this is not the case for Hyun-ju. Like most Korean players are known for, his strong work ethic and mentality have been aiding him in his journey in Germany.
Approximately 7 months left to his loan at the Red and Blacks — does he have a foreseeable future with the German record champions?
Specifically with a prospect like Hyun-ju, it might be incredibly challenging to predict a young player’s potential. But reminiscing back to his stay in Korea, then to his departure to Germany to play at the Regionalliga, and the current stage of actively competing in the 2. Bundesliga — maybe, most likely he has a chance at the first division in the upcoming year. Though, in my personal view — it might not happen at Bayern.
It is a foul to disregard the midfield options that the Bayern first team currently possesses, along with the feasible options they have with the talents being developed in the reserve team, and of course — not forgetting about the potential transfers in the upcoming Winter transfer window. Hyun-ju will eventually trouble challenging for a spot against well-known stars in the Bundesliga; Sane and Musiala occupying the slot — although he is a great player himself with a bright year ahead.
Anyhow this does not mean that the Bavarians dropped their interest in developing Asian talents. With this part, I would give close notice to Taichi Fukui — a Japanese U20 international who is a year younger than Hyun-ju in age. With 15 total appearances in the Regionalliga Bayern, he has been actively getting minutes in the German atmosphere — despite transferring on January 2023. Noticeably, after training multiple times with the first team, he might’ve caught the eye of the famous German manager — Thomas Tuchel. This led to a valuable opportunity for the young midfielder, as he made a senior debut at the DFB Pokal Cup against Preußen Münster which was held in September, among 3 fellow debutants. What does the current Bayern staff think about him?
“Taichi is an interesting player, a technically gifted attacking midfielder who’s agile and a good dribbler. Given the strength of his character we believe he has plenty of potential for development,” commented Holger Seitz —the current Bayern youth academy director.
“Taichi trained with our reserve team for several weeks over the summer and consistently made a good impression. We’re delighted that he’s joining us,” said Jochen Sauer — director of the Bayern Campus.
Though two exciting talents coming from Asia do not overlap in positions; with Lee Hyun-ju being a dominant left-attacking midfielder and a winger, Taichi is involved as an effective central midfielder — to be exact, an deep-lying playmaker. Seeing both of them playing in the same pitch might be quite interesting, due to the overload of creativity two players can offer inside the pitch. It is not impossible to picture them in the same squad next year. Thus, I would like to point out the Austrian wizard of football — Rene Maric, who was recently appointed as the team lead coaching development and playing philosophy. With more creative minds being added to the gigantic club, it would be fascinating to see what is coming in this particular project with developing Asian talents at Bayern.
In conclusion, when Hyun-ju’s loan comes to an end — I would expect him to stay at the Bavarian grounds, potentially joining the fellow Korean defender, Kim Min-jae. Or maybe loan to a first-division club that preferably suits his attacking style, but the following path is low in possibility. It will totally depend on his remaining time at SV Wehen Wiesbaden, as more is expected to come in the unpredictable 2. Bundesliga. But so far, what he has shown at such a high level is considered impressive, which is probably noted by Bayern as they continuously monitor his growth in the German campaign.
Published & written by: Justin J. Oh (Korean Football Scout & Recruitment Analyst)
