Correspondent Jong-hoon Kang and Ha-eun Seol = It is a flower that bloomed late.
Defender Park Jin-seop (Jeonbuk), a member of the Korean national soccer team led by interim coach Hwang Seon-hong, defeated Thailand 2-0 in the 4th game of Group C of the 2026 North and Central America World Cup Asia 2nd qualifying round against Thailand at Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand on the 26th (Korean time). He scored his A-match debut goal in the 37th minute of the second half.
In a left corner kick situation, Kim Jin-su’s cross was headed down by Kim Min-jae, and Park Jin-seop hit the net with a right-footed non-stop shot from the front of the goal.
Korea completed a 3-0 victory with Park Jin-seop’s key goal.
Considering that he was born in 1995, it was a somewhat late debut goal in the international match, but Park Jin-seop proved that he is a ‘late blooming flower’ with this goal.
The moment a goal was scored, Park Jin-seop, who stood there and raised both arms, met with reporters in the common reporting area after the game and looked back, saying, “The celebration came out without me knowing. I think it felt really good.”
At the same time, he said, “(Kim) Min-jae made everything for me, so I thanked him,” and added, “My debut goal was my debut goal, but it was a tough away game, and I feel good about scoring a lot of goals and getting a big win.”
Park Jin-seop is from the K3 League, the third division of Korean soccer.
Unable to sign a contract with a professional team, he joined Daejeon Korail in 2017 and played as an unemployed soccer player.
Afterwards, based on his performance as a midfielder and ranked second in scoring, he made his professional debut wearing the uniform of the Ansan Greeners of the K League 2 (Second Division) in 2018.
In 2020, he joined the K League 2 Daejeon Hana Citizen as a founding member and began to show his true value in earnest.
He showed outstanding performance, including being selected as the Monthly Best Player (MVP) selected by Daejeon fans three times in a row in the 2021 season, being named the K-League 2 Round MVP five times, and being selected as the K-League 2 Best 11 Midfielder in the regular season.
Park Jin-seop entered the K-League 1 despite being rejected.
Park Jin-seop, who transferred to the big club Jeonbuk Hyundai in the 2022 season, made his debut in K League 1. After taking the position of Jeonbuk’s starting central defender in his first season, he grew into the league’s best center back and had the pleasure of being selected as one of the K League 1 Best 11 Defenders.
His remaining goal was the Taegeuk mark.
Park Jin-seop, who had never been selected for an age-group national team even as a youth, was called by coach Hwang Seon-hong and joined the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games soccer team held last year as a wild card, wearing the Taegeuk mark for the first time in his life.
Then, Hwang Seon-hong contributed to winning the men’s soccer title for the third time in a row at the Asian Games, won a gold medal, and also received military service benefits.
In November of last year, Park Jin-seop entered the golden age of his soccer career when he was selected to the A national team for the first time at the call of former coach Jurgen Klinsmann.
Afterwards, he made his A match debut by participating in the Asian second qualifying round of the North and Central America World Cup against China, and also took the stage at the 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Qatar Asian Cup.
Park Jin-seop, who also joined the A team under interim coach Hwang Sun-hong, finally appeared as a substitute in the second half of the World Cup qualifier away game against Thailand, blocking the opponent’s attack, and even tasted a goal in 6 A matches.
Park Jin-seop, who went through K3, K League 2, and K League 1 in order, and won a gold medal as a wild card in the Asian Games, was then selected to the A national team and even scored his debut goal, proving his ability by growing every season.
After returning on the 27th after a meaningful trip to Thailand, he said, “I am not in a position to score goals, but I have always dreamed of scoring an international goal. I am grateful that it has come true.” He added, “A lot has happened from the Asian Games to now, and it feels like a dream has come true. “As I worked hard, I naturally received help from those around me,” he said.
Park Jin-seop, who also expressed his ambition, saying, “My next goal is to participate in the World Cup,” emphasized, “I will not lose my original intention and maintain good performance with my team.”
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