Koreans in Europe: Lee Kang-in gets assist in last PSG game of 2023

Lee Kang-in picked up another Ligue 1 assist as Paris Saint-Germain beat FC Metz 3-1 to win their final game of the calendar year on Wednesday at home.

Paris Saint-Germain's Lee Kang-in challenges for the ball with FC Metz's Habib Maiga, during a Ligue 1 match at Parc des Princes in Paris on Wednesday. [AP/YONHAP]

Lee Kang-in picked up another Ligue 1 assist on Wednesday as Paris Saint-Germain beat FC Metz 3-1 to win their final game of the calendar year at home.

Scoring was slow to start at Parc des Princes despite an action-packed first half with plenty of near chances. Lee was there to set things up for French international Kylian Mbappe in the 14th minute but the striker missed out on a penalty due to an offside call.

But things picked up after the teams headed back to the pitch. Four minutes into the second half, Lee made a right-wing cross over to a speeding Vitinha, who finished the job from the middle with a solid strike into the corner of the net to open the scoring and put PSG up 1-0.

Mbappe finally got his first goal of the match in the 60th minute to give the home team a comfortable two-goal lead.

Metz put one back with a Matthieu Udol header in the 72nd minute, but Mbappe solidified the win for PSG in the 83rd minute, nabbing an easy double after skipping past Metz goalie Alexandre Oukidja to end things at 3-1.

Lee, who scored his first and only Ligue 1 goal in November against Montpellier, narrowly missed his own chances at the net Wednesday. He had a near shot in the 78th minute off a pass from Mbappe but Metz’s Lamine Camara got there first, sliding in to kick the ball away.

Lee’s Thursday assist was his second for PSG, the Ligue 1 leaders, since he signed with the club in July. And it was his first on home turf at Parc des Princes in Paris.

The 22-year-old winger nabbed his first Ligue 1 assist back in October in a game against Brest at Le Ble Stadium in Brest, France, setting things up — also with a cross — for Mbappe.

Lee, who has become a regular on PSG’s starting XI, saw another 90 minutes on the pitch on Wednesday night in Paris, stepping off only during stoppage time.

So far this season, Lee has played a total 795 minutes for PSG in Ligue 1 and another 210 minutes in the Champions League.

He got his first PSG goal in a Champions League game against AC Milan in October, weeks after returning from the Hangzhou Asian Games.

There, the Korean national men’s football team won gold, earning the full squad exemption from mandatory military service. That included Lee, even though PSG released him right before the end of the group stage.

Lee has also been on the rise in Korea, where he has become a regular pick on Jurgen Klinsmann’s roster, scoring a load of goals during friendlies and qualifiers to the next World Cup.

His popularity has continued to climb off the pitch, too. An annual poll by Gallup Korea saw Lee come in as the second-most popular name in Korean sport — behind Korean football darling Son Heung-min.

PSG end their 2023 schedule at the top of the Ligue 1 table, five points clear of No. 2 Nice. Metz, who had their fourth straight loss on Wednesday sit in No. 14 on the 18-team table. The Paris side next face No. 16 Toulouse at home on Jan. 3.

BY MARY YANG [mary.yang@joongang.co.kr]