"0 for Korea, 10 for Japan"... Korean EPL Players 'Wipe Out' for the First Time in 21 Years Following Hwang Hee-chan's Departure

[Financial News] The lineage of Korean players in the Premier League, who used to entertain South Korean football fans on weekend nights, has effectively been severed after 21 years. Following 'Captain' Son Heung-min (Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC)) moving to a different league after the end of last season, 'The Bull' Hwang Hee-chan has also left England, making it difficult to see Korean players active in the first division of the Premier League during the 2026–2027 season.
The Premier League summer transfer window officially closed at 7 a.m. on the 2nd, Korean time. Hwang Hee-chan's destination, which had been the biggest point of interest for domestic fans, was ultimately Germany, not England.
Hwang Hee-chan, who faced the setback of his team Wolverhampton Wanderers' relegation to the EFL Championship (second division) last season, sought a breakthrough and ultimately finalized a loan move to FC Schalke 04, a prestigious club in the German 2nd Bundesliga. This marks his return to the German stage after five years, since his time at RB Leipzig in 2021. Although there was interest from some Premier League clubs toward the end of the transfer window, Hwang made a bold decision to secure playing time.
With this, the number of Korean first-team regulars on the Premier League grounds this season has effectively become 'zero'.

Currently, there are two Korean players registered with Premier League clubs: Park Seung-soo (Newcastle United Football Club) and Kim Ji-soo (Brentford), but it is difficult for them to prove their competitiveness on the first-team stage right now. Park Seung-soo is currently training with the Under-21 team, and although Kim Ji-soo has been assigned jersey number 36 for the first team, a tough competition for a starting spot is expected. Yang Min-hyeok, who joined Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, and Yoon Do-young of Brighton & Hove Albion have chosen to gain match experience by going on loan to Westerlo (Belgium) and Magdeburg (Germany), respectively.
This marks the most painful decline since Park Ji-sung joined Manchester United in 2005. Korean football has reigned as the dominant force in Asian football, producing numerous Premier League players such as Lee Young-pyo, Seol Ki-hyeon, Lee Dong-gook, Kim Do-heon, Lee Chung-yong, Ji Dong-won, and Ki Sung-yueng. In particular, over the past decade, Korea's status in the Premier League reached its peak thanks to the overwhelming performance of Son Heung-min, who became the first Asian player to win the Golden Boot.

On the other hand, the actions of neighboring Japan stand in stark contrast to those of Korea.
There are as many as 10 Japanese players playing in the Premier League this season. In addition to existing key players such as Kaoru Mitoma (Brighton & Hove Albion), Wataru Endo (Liverpool FC), Takehiro Tomiyasu, and Daichi Kamada (both The Crystal Palace), the squad has expanded both quantitatively and qualitatively with the mass addition of Ao Tanaka (Leeds), Daizen Maeda (Ipswich), Hidemasa Morita (Hull City), Kōta Takai (Tottenham Hotspur Football Club), Tatsuhiro Sakamoto (Coventry City Football Club), and Zion Suzuki (Aston Villa F.C.).
The assessment by the influential British media outlet 'The Guardian' was harsh. The Guardian analyzed that "the number of Japanese players entering the Premier League is increasing explosively," and that "Japan is completely snatching the lead in Asian football from Korea." This is a bitter reality that Korean football must deeply contemplate.
[email protected] Jeon Sang-il Reporter