Premier League may be Korean-less in 2025-26 season as Wolves’ Hwang likely to leave

 
Korean players’ two-decade-long presence in the Premier League could end this summer, with Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Hwang Hee-chan expected to leave the club.
 
Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano, widely regarded as one of Europe’s top authorities on transfer news, said on X on Saturday that “Hwang could leave Wolves this summer with two clubs already making approaches.”
 
 
Hwang scored 12 goals in the 2023-24 Premier League season, but injuries derailed his 2024-25 campaign, limiting him to just two goals in 21 league appearances.
 
Wolves manager Vítor Pereira has favored striker Jorgen Strand Larsen and indicated that Hwang’s spot in the best XI is not guaranteed.
 
Hwang has featured only as a substitute in preseason matches and has been linked with Birmingham City in the Championship.
 
Birmingham, home to countryman Paik Seung-ho, won League One last season and are looking to bolster their attack ahead of their return to the second division.
 
With the 2026 World Cup set for next summer, Hwang may seek more playing time, though he reportedly does not want to move to the second division. His weekly wage of 70,000 pounds ($94,000) could also be a stumbling block for Birmingham.
 
Hwang has also been linked to French club Marseille, with manager Roberto De Zerbi having shown interest in the player last summer.
 
If Hwang leaves, the Premier League could be without a single Korean player for the first time in two decades.
 
Son Heung-min left Tottenham Hotspur to join Los Angeles FC last week, while Yang Min-hyeok also left the London club to join Championship team Portsmouth on loan.
 
Yoon Do-young, who joined Brighton & Hove Albion this summer, also moved to SBV Excelsior in the Netherlands on loan, with Kim Ji-soo completing his loan transfer from Brentford to 2. Bundesliga club FC Kaiserslautern.
 
Newcastle United winger Park Seung-soo, 18, is on the books with the club, but he could be sent to the reserves team first or out on loan ahead of the upcoming season. That move, coupled with Hwang’s departure, would leave the Premier League with zero Korean players. 
 

Newcastle United Park Seung-soo controls the ball during a Coupang Play Series match against Team K League at Suwon World Cup Stadium in Suwon, Gyeonggi, on July 30. [YONHAP]

 
The English top flight has seen multiple Korean footballers since Park Ji-sung joined Manchester United in 2005, with Lee Young-pyo, Lee Chung-yong and Ki Sung-yueng having featured as well.
 
Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae and Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Lee Kang-in were the subjects of Premier League transfer rumors, but the two have reportedly favored staying in their respective clubs. 
 
No Korean presence in the Premier League may come in the first year of exclusive Premier League broadcasting by streaming service Coupang Play — a deal Coupang spent around 70 billion won ($50 million) on.
 
Korea’s age-old rivals, Japan, meanwhile, have five players in the Premier League, with Brighton & Hove Albion’s Kaoru Mitoma, Liverpool’s Wataru Endo, Crystal Palace’s Daichi Kamada, Leeds United’s Ao Tanaka and Spurs’ Kota Takai expected to feature in the 2025-26 campaign.
 
The 2025-26 Premier League season will kick off on Friday and conclude in May of next year.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY PARK RIN [[email protected]]