Product Code Database
Lee Kang-in (; born 19 February 2001) is a South Korean professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for club Paris Saint-Germain and the South Korea national team.
A product of Valencia CF's youth academy, Lee made his professional debut for Valencia at the age of 17 in the year 2018, becoming the youngest South Korean footballer to debut professionally in Europe. In his debut season, he won the Copa del Rey, before making his UEFA Champions League debut in his second professional season. Lee joined RCD Mallorca in 2021, where he established himself as one of Europe's top dribblers, before leaving Spain for French club Paris Saint-Germain in 2023.
In 2019, Lee won the Asian Young Footballer of the Year, the same year that he won the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup's Golden Ball award. Lee's team finished runner-up during the event. He later made his senior debut for South Korea in September 2019, representing his nation's squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and 2023 AFC Asian Cup.
Lee made his La Liga debut on 12 January 2019, substituting in for Denis Cheryshev in the 86th minute in a 1–1 draw with Real Valladolid during 2018–19 season. At 17 years, 10 months, and 24 days, Lee became the second youngest player in the 18–19 La Liga after Ander Barrenetxea from Real Sociedad who debuted at the age of 16 years, 11 months, and 24 days. He also became the youngest ever non-Spanish and the first Asian league debutant for Valencia, as well as the fifth Korean to play in La Liga.
On 30 January 2019, Lee officially joined the Valencia first-team, receiving jersey number 16.
After being on the transfer list during the entire pre-season, Lee terminated his contract with Valencia on 29 August 2021.
During the 2022–23 season, Lee became one of the best dribblers in the Big Five European leagues by making the highest success rate of dribbles and the sixth highest number of successful dribbles.
Lee made his Ligue 1 debut in a 0–0 draw against FC Lorient at the Parc des Princes on 12 August. On 25 October, Lee scored his first PSG goal, his first ever in the Champions League, in a 3–0 victory over AC Milan. On 3 November, he scored his first goal in Ligue 1 in a 3–0 win over Montpellier HSC. On 3 January 2024, he was named man of the match, after he scored the opening goal in the 2023 Trophée des Champions final against Toulouse FC in a 2–0 victory, winning his first title with the club. As PSG won the Double of the Ligue 1 and the Coupe de France in the 2023–24 season, he became the first Asian player to win the Ligue 1.
In the 2024–25 season, Lee became the second Asian ever to receive a UEFA Champions League medal, following compatriot Park Ji-sung, but his playing time during the second half of the season decreased sharply due to Khvicha Kvaratskhelia's joining and Désiré Doué's growth. He considered his transfer in the summer despite winning a continental treble. On 15 June 2025, he came on as a 72nd-minute substitute and scored his first FIFA Club World Cup goal on a penalty kick in a 4–0 win over Atlético Madrid.
Lee was called up for friendlies in September 2022 just before the 2022 FIFA World Cup by showing his evolution on both side of the ball in La Liga. He only participated in team training without appearances in the friendlies, but was selected for the 26-men World Cup team. He assisted Cho Gue-sung's header with an accurate cross in the second group match against Ghana.
Lee was called up the South Korean squad for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup. He led South Korea to the knockout stage by scoring two goals in a 3–1 victory over Bahrain and having a free-kick goal and an assist from a corner in a 3–3 draw with Malaysia. He created the highest number of key passes and successful crosses until the quarter-finals. After South Korea was eliminated in the semi-finals by Jordan, however, it was reported that he had been in conflict with veteran players in the national team including captain Son Heung-min before the defeat.
| + Appearances and goals by club, season and competition !rowspan="2" | Club !rowspan="2" | Season !colspan="3" | League !colspan="2" | National cup !colspan="2" | Europe !colspan="2" | Other !colspan="2" | Total |
| Valencia B | 2017–18 | Segunda División B | 1 | ||||
| 2018–19 | Segunda División B | 3 | |||||
| Valencia CF | 2018–19 | La Liga | 0 | ||||
| 2019–20 | La Liga | 2 | |||||
| 2020–21 | La Liga | 1 | |||||
| RCD Mallorca | 2021–22 | La Liga | 1 | ||||
| 2022–23 | La Liga | 6 | |||||
| Paris Saint-Germain | 2023–24 | Ligue 1 | 5 | ||||
| 2024–25 | Ligue 1 | 7 | |||||
| + Appearances and goals by national team and year !National team!!Year!!Apps!!Goals |
| South Korea |
| 0 |
| 0 |
| 0 |
| 0 |
| 4 |
| 6 |
| 1 |
| + List of international goals scored by Lee Kang-in !scope=col | No. !scope=col | Date !scope=col | Venue !scope=col | Cap !scope=col | Opponent !scope=col | Score !scope=col | Result !scope=col | Competition |
| Friendly | ||||||||
| 2–0 | ||||||||
| Friendly | ||||||||
| 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification | ||||||||
| 2023 AFC Asian Cup | ||||||||
| 3–1 | ||||||||
| 2023 AFC Asian Cup | ||||||||
| 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification | ||||||||
| 4–0 | ||||||||
| 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification | ||||||||
| 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Paris Saint-Germain
South Korea U20
South Korea U23
Individual
|
|
