Discovering Kwon Hyeok-kyu and Hong Hyun-seok, the two South Koreans recruited by Nantes, as told by former teammates

Select Language

English

Down Icon

Select Country

France

Down Icon

Discovering Kwon Hyeok-kyu and Hong Hyun-seok, the two South Koreans recruited by Nantes, as told by former teammates

Discovering Kwon Hyeok-kyu and Hong Hyun-seok, the two South Koreans recruited by Nantes, as told by former teammates

Discovering Kwon Hyeok-kyu and Hong Hyun-seok, the two South Koreans recruited by Nantes, as told by former teammates
After Kwon Hyeok-kyu, Hong Hyun-seok joined FC Nantes from Mainz. But what are the characteristics of these two South Korean players? We'll answer the question with two players who have played alongside them in the past.
Kwon Hyeok-kyu, left, during the friendly match lost against Rennes (2-3) on Saturday and Hong Hyun-seok, right, in the colors of Mainz last season. (A. Duret/M. Ossowski/FC Nantes/Picture Alliance/SvenSimon)
Kwon Hyeok-kyu, left, during the friendly match lost against Rennes (2-3) on Saturday and Hong Hyun-seok, right, in the colors of Mainz last season. (A. Duret/M. Ossowski/FC Nantes/Picture Alliance/SvenSimon)

He's one of the little unknowns in the Nantes transfer window. Constrained by its financial means, FCN is trying its luck... at low cost. And exploring profiles not necessarily referenced in Ligue 1. With this in mind, Kwon Hyeok-kyu (24 years old) has signed for three seasons . He was on loan last season from Celtic Glasgow to Hibernian. And was imitated by Hong Hyun-seok, 26, on loan with an option to buy (€3.5 million) from Mainz.

What can we expect from the two South Koreans, who have seen limited playing time recently? Two former teammates, Elie Youan and Anthony Caci, share their thoughts.

For his first appearance in a Nantes jersey on Saturday in a friendly against Rennes (2-3), the defensive midfielder's height (1.92 m) stood out, as did his ability to lead and not be pretentious in contact. "He's a regulator," says Youan, who simply called him "Kwon" and who played alongside him at Hibernian last season. "At home, with Dylan Levitt, he was one of two midfielders who could aspire to Ligue 1. He goes to the ball, he's not afraid. He's a 6, but an organizer, who breaks the lines, he makes good passes. He's not bothered with the ball. He can be a sentinel and an 8, but I see him more as a sentinel." Where Luis Castro used him against Rennes.

"With the GPS vests, you have to cover distances on the field and what he liked to do, when everyone was going slowly, was to accelerate, to sprint, when the exercise was over."

Elie Youan, his former partner at Hibernian

And his personality? "There was a bit of a language barrier, the Scottish accent is strong. When he makes a mistake and you tell him, if he understands, he makes a circle with his arms above his head. If not, he makes a cross. But here, everyone loved him and was sad to see him go. At his hazing, we were at a restaurant and he sang Oasis, everyone followed him. He's introverted, but he has a side where he knows how to laugh. With the GPS vests, you have to cover distances on the field and what he liked to do, when everyone was going slowly, was accelerate, sprint, when the exercise was over (smile) . He did it on purpose to make the numbers go up, with a smirk. He's hiding his game."

He was nicknamed "Hongi" at Mainz. "He's a person who respects instructions, often the first in the weight room, " Caci describes. "He runs a lot, attacks the opponent. He's comfortable getting out of situations when there's little space." His qualities, however, haven't allowed him to establish himself as a starter. "He arrived a little later and the team was moving well," Caci explains. "But when he came on, he added something extra." Where could he fit into Castro's 4-3-3? "I wouldn't say he's a winger," Caci thinks. "We played a 3-5-2, and he was mostly used as an 8. He can still improve his finishing, but he's really someone who doesn't cheat to make an effort."

"There's another South Korean in our squad, they were together all the time. It helped him integrate a lot."

Anthony Caci, his former partner in Mainz

Last anecdote about him: "He came back for summer prep with a new haircut, we didn't understand. We said to him: did you go to the army or what? And he said yes!" The boy is not the type to take things too seriously: "When he arrived in Mainz, he was looking for an apartment and the owners, who wanted to talk to him, replied via a translation application. Except that it didn't work at all, it was incomprehensible. But it made him laugh and he ended up taking this apartment anyway." The former Strasbourg player adds: "There is another South Korean in our squad (Lee Jae-sung) , they were together all the time. It helped him a lot to integrate and the fact of finding a South Korean in Nantes will undoubtedly do him good."

L'Équipe

L'Équipe

Similar News

All News
Animated ArrowAnimated ArrowAnimated Arrow