Seol Ki-hyeon (born 8 January 1979) is a South Korean former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a winger, and who currently is the manager of

Gyeongnam FC Gyeongnam FC (Hangul: 경남 FC) is a South Korean professional football club based in South Gyeongsang Province that competes in the K League 2, the second tier of South Korean football. Its home stadium is the Changwon Football Center, located ...

. He is also the first South Korean footballer to score in the history of the

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...

, during his time at

Anderlecht Anderlecht (, ) is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the south-western part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels, Forest, Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, and Saint-Gilles, as well as the ...

Club career

Career in Belgium

In July 2000, Seol joined a Belgian club

Royal Antwerp Royal Antwerp Football Club, often referred to as Royal Antwerp or simply Antwerp, is a Belgian football club based in the city of Antwerp. Founded around 1880 as ''Antwerp Cricket Club'' by English students residing in Antwerp, 15 years before ...

. He became the second South Korean footballer to score in double figures during a season in Europe, following Cha Bum-kun. After a successful season with Royal Antwerp, Seol moved to

in the same league. He scored a hat-trick in the space of 12 minutes in the 2001 Belgian Super Cup. He also became the first South Korean player to score in the qualifying round of the

. He won the

2003–04 Belgian First Division The 2003–04 season of the Belgian First Division was held between 8 August 2003 and 15 May 2004. Sporting Anderlecht became champions on 24 April 2004. Promoted teams These teams were promoted from the second division at the start of the se ...

with Anderlecht.

Wolverhampton Wanderers

In August 2004, Seol moved to England, joining a

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

club

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...

. The Wolverhampton manager at the time,

Glenn Hoddle Glenn Hoddle (born 27 October 1957) is an English former football player and manager. He currently works as a television pundit and commentator for ITV Sport and BT Sport. He played as a midfielder for Tottenham Hotspur, Monaco, Chelsea and ...

, preferred Seol as one of his first-choice forwards, using him in various roles such as striker, attacking midfielder and winger. Disappointed by the failure of Wolves' promotion, Seol sought Premier League clubs interested in him before the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...

despite having two years left on his contract. He was reported as saying "At this stage, I'm frustrated not to be in the Premiership. I think there will be some good news after the World Cup."

Reading

Seol eventually joined newly promoted Premier League club

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

on 12 July 2006 for a reported transfer fee of £1.5 million. He was voted the Reading Player of the Month for August by fans after showing great performances early in the season. On 16 September 2006, he scored his first Premiership goal in a 2–1 win over

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

. On 1 October 2006, he scored his second goal for Reading in a 1–0 win over West Ham United. His third goal for Reading, his first at home, came on 18 November 2006 in the 2–0 win against

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in ...

. However, his performance was not consistently kept during the rest of the season. He scored his fourth goal in the last game of the season against

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...

Fulham

Seol left Reading for Fulham on 31 August 2007 for an undisclosed fee on a three-year contract, with

Liam Rosenior Liam James Rosenior (born 9 July 1984) is an English football manager and former player. He played either as a full-back or winger. He is the son of former player and manager Leroy Rosenior, and spent time on loan at Torquay United, where his ...

going the other way. Reading boss Steve Coppell admitted that strained relations between him and Seol led to the move. After his manager

Lawrie Sanchez Lawrence Philip Sanchez (born 22 October 1959) is a Northern Irish football manager and former international footballer. The defining moment of his playing career came in the 1988 FA Cup Final, when he scored the winning goal for Wimbledon a ...

was replaced by Roy Hodgson, Seol wasn't chosen as Hodgson's player during the rest of the season. He scored his first goal for Fulham in a 2–1 defeat to

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that compete in the . They have played home games at the MKM Stadium since moving from Boothferry Park in 2002. The club's t ...

on 16 August 2008, but he still didn't show something special the next season. On 14 January 2009, he signed an initial six-month loan move to Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia with a view to moving permanently. However, he stated that he desired to stay at Fulham to win his place in the squad at the end of his loan deal. Seol scored his second goal for the club in a Europa League qualifier against

FK Vėtra FK Vėtra was a Lithuanian football team from the capital city of Vilnius. History The club was founded in 1997 and was initially based in Rūdiškės, a settlement in Trakai district, and moved in 2003 to Vilnius city with the purchase of ...

on 30 July 2009, but he failed to made a twist for his status. On 15 January 2010, It was announced that his contract with Fulham was cancelled by mutual consent.

Retirement

Seol played for

Pohang Steelers The Pohang Steelers (Hangul: 포항 스틸러스) are a South Korean professional football club based in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province that compete in the K League 1, the top flight of South Korean football. The Steelers were founded on 1 A ...

Ulsan Hyundai Ulsan Hyundai FC ( ko, 울산 현대 축구단) is a South Korean professional football club based in Ulsan that competes in the K League 1, the top tier of South Korean football. Founded in 1983 as Hyundai Horang-i, they joined the K League ...

, and

Incheon United Incheon United FC is a South Korean professional football club based in Incheon that competes in the K League 1, the top flight of South Korean football. Founded in 2003, the club is a so-called "community club", with the government of the city ...

in the K League after leaving Fulham. During his K League career, he was criticised for having no respect for clubs and lying to fans. He announced his retirement on 2 March 2015 in order to become the interim manager of

Sungkyunkwan University Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU or simply ''Seongdae'', Hangul: 성균관대학교; Hanja: 成均館大學校) is a private comprehensive research university in South Korea. The institution traces its origins to the historic Sungkyunkwan, found ...

. His retirement ceremony took place in a friendly match between South Korea and

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

on 13 October 2015.

International career

Seol was a participant in

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

and

. In the 2002 World Cup hosted by his country, he helped South Korea to reach the semi-finals as a starter. He also scored crucial equaliser in the round of 16 against

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. He was nominated for the

Ballon d'Or The Ballon d'Or (; ) is an annual football award presented by French news magazine ''France Football'' since 1956. Between 2010 and 2015, in an agreement with FIFA, the award was temporarily merged with the FIFA World Player of the Year (fo ...

in that year.

Managerial career

On 26 December 2019, Seol was appointed as manager of

Media

Seol was sponsored by sportswear company

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

and appeared in Nike commercials. In a global Nike advertising campaign in the run-up to the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan, he starred in a " Secret Tournament" commercial (branded "Scopion KO") directed by

Terry Gilliam Terrence Vance Gilliam (; born 22 November 1940) is an American-born British filmmaker, comedian, animator, actor and former member of the Monty Python comedy troupe. Gilliam has directed 13 feature films, including ''Time Bandits'' (1981), ''B ...

, appearing alongside football players such as

Thierry Henry Thierry Daniel Henry (born 17 August 1977) is a French professional football coach, pundit, and former player who is an assistant coach for the Belgium national team. Considered one of the best strikers of all time and one of the best player ...

Ronaldo Ronaldo is a Portuguese given name equivalent to the English Ronald. It became a common name in all Portuguese-speaking countries, being also prevalent in Italy and Spanish-speaking countries. People Notable people known as Ronaldo include: As ...

Edgar Davids Edgar Steven Davids (; born 13 March 1973) is a Dutch-Surinamese former professional footballer and current coach. After beginning his career with Ajax, winning several domestic and international titles, he subsequently played in Italy for AC Mi ...

, Fabio Cannavaro,

Francesco Totti Francesco Totti (; born 27 September 1976) is an Italian former professional footballer who played solely for Roma and the Italy national team. He is often referred to as ''Er Bimbo de Oro'' (The Golden Boy), ''L'Ottavo Re di Roma'' (The Eig ...

Ronaldinho Ronaldo de Assis Moreira (born 21 March 1980), commonly known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho () or simply Ronaldinho, is a Brazilian retired professional association football, footballer who played mostly as an attacking midfielder, but was also deplo ...

Luís Figo Luís Filipe Madeira Caeiro Figo (; born 4 November 1972) is a Portuguese former professional footballer who played as a winger for Sporting CP, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Inter Milan. He won 127 caps for the Portugal national team, a one-ti ...

, and

Hidetoshi Nakata is a Japanese former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest Asian players of all time. Nakata began his professional career in 1995 and won the Asian Football Confederation Player ...

, with former player

Eric Cantona Eric Daniel Pierre Cantona (; ; born 24 May 1966) is a French actor, director, producer, and former professional footballer. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation, Cantona is credited as having made Manchester United a d ...

the tournament "referee".

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Results list South Korea's goal tally first.''

Honours

Anderlecht *

Belgian First Division The Belgian Pro League,(officially the Jupiler Pro League due to sponsorship reasons with Jupiler), is the top league competition for association football clubs in Belgium. Contested by 18 clubs since the 2020–21 season and reduced to 16 team ...

: 2003–04 *

Belgian Super Cup The Belgian Super Cup ( nl, Belgische Supercup, ; french: Supercoupe de Belgique; german: Belgischer Fußball-Super Cup), ''Pro League Supercup'', is a Belgian club competition played as a single match between the Belgian First Division A champio ...

: 2001 Al-Hilal *

Saudi Crown Prince Cup The Saudi Crown Prince's Cup ( ar, كأس ولي العهد) was the Saudi Arabian annual cup competition. It was the oldest domestic football competition in Saudi Arabia, its first edition was held in 1956–57, but was not crowned from 1975 unti ...

: 2008–09 Ulsan Hyundai *

Korean League Cup The Korean League Cup was a professional football competition in South Korean football. It was held by the K League Federation from 1986 to 2012. Sponsorship Champions List of finals Titles by club K League's principle of official stati ...

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

South Korea U20 * AFC Youth Championship: 1998 South Korea *

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

fourth place:

AFC Asian Cup The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second oldest cont ...

third place:

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

Individual * Korean FA Fans' Player of the Year: 2006

Notes

References

External links

*
Seol Ki-hyeon – National Team Stats
at KFA * *
Profile
at alhilal.com * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Seol, Ki-hyeon 1979 births Living people Association football forwards Association football wingers South Korean footballers South Korean expatriate footballers South Korea international footballers Royal Antwerp F.C. players R.S.C. Anderlecht players Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players Reading F.C. players Fulham F.C. players Al Hilal SFC players Pohang Steelers players Ulsan Hyundai FC players Incheon United FC players Belgian First Division A players English Football League players Premier League players K League 1 players South Korean expatriate sportspeople in Belgium South Korean expatriate sportspeople in the United Kingdom South Korean expatriate sportspeople in Saudi Arabia Expatriate footballers in Belgium Expatriate footballers in England South Korean expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate footballers in Saudi Arabia 2000 AFC Asian Cup players 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2002 FIFA World Cup players 2004 AFC Asian Cup players 2006 FIFA World Cup players Saudi Professional League players South Korean Buddhists People from Jeongseon County