I can’t miss this Korean guy! Wolves Corps: Wolverhampton negotiates renewal of contract with Hwang Hee-chan

British media outlet ‘The Athletic’ reported on the 19th (KST), “Hwang Hee-chan has become a key player for Wolverhampton. Wolverhampton intend to reward him with a new contract. The negotiations are progressing positively as Hwang also wants to stay at Wolverhampton. He is said to be enjoying playing under Gary O’Neill, so a contract extension is expected.”

Hwang’s position at Wolverhampton was ambiguous at the start of the season. Hwang’s manager, Julen Lopetegui, left the club just before the start of the Premier League (PL) season. Wolverhampton managed just two wins in the first 15 games of last season. They didn’t even win a single game away from home. The club eventually sacked manager Bruno Raz. Wolverhampton went to acting manager Steve Davis until a new manager was found, but nothing changed. Wolverhampton finished the first half at the bottom of the league.

At halftime, Wolverhampton hired Lopetegui. The move paid off for Wolverhampton. Lopetegui made his (PL) debut with a win. Lopetegui then overhauled the team and led them out of the relegation zone. Lopetegui won nine games, drew four and lost 10 in the second half of the season to finish 13th. He took over from the bottom of the table and led the team to a mid-table finish, making the following season even more exciting.

Lopetegui has a decent season ahead of him at Wolverhampton, but the club hasn’t been very active in the transfer market. At the start of the transfer window, only two signings were made, Matt Doherty and Tom King, aside from loan returns. Both were free agents. They then brought in Santiago Bueno, Jean-Luc Belgaard, and Enzo Gonzalez, but they weren’t really first-team options.

Rather, players left the team. The heart of the midfield, Leo Neves, left for Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia for €55 million. Raul Jimenez, who was responsible for the front line, also left for Fulham. Lopetegui’s first season in charge of Wolverhampton didn’t go well, and he eventually left the club.

Lopetegui’s departure was not good news for Hwang Hee-chan. Lopetegui gave him a lot of opportunities. Under Lopetegui, Hwang averaged just 29 minutes of playing time. He only had one offensive point and one assist. Under Lopetegui, he averaged 50 minutes and scored three goals. However, with the change of coach, Hwang had to compete for a starting spot again.

Hwang started the season on the bench. He started the season as a substitute in the opening game against Manchester United, and then came on as a substitute in the second round against Brighton. Hwang scored his first goal of the season five minutes after coming off the bench in the second leg. He rattled the net with a header from a Pablo Sarabia corner.

After making a good impression on O’Neill, Hwang began to start. He started against Everton in the third round. However, he was substituted after the first half. The problem was an injury. Every time Hwang had a good game, injuries interrupted it, and this time it was a hamstring injury.

He recovered quickly and was back on the field as a substitute in the fourth round against Crystal Palace. Once again, Hwang was a joker. Five minutes after coming on, he scored a goal. With the goal in hand, Hwang stepped up his game in the September A match. He started again against Liverpool and scored the opening goal. He also scored against Ipswich in the third round of the English Football League Cup (EFL Cup).토토사이트

Pep Guardiola also kept an eye on Hwang. In his pre-match press conference, Guardiola said, “It’s always a tough game against Wolverhampton. “It’s always difficult against Wolverhampton because they have quality players. Especially Pedro Neto, Mateusz Cunha and the Greco-Croatian Guy (Hwang Hee-chan) are strikers with a high level of quality.”

Guardiola was impressed with Hwang’s play but didn’t know his name yet. Gary O’Neill started Hwang against Man City. There was no way he was going to start the team’s top scorer from the bench. The game was expected to be dominated by City.

As expected, the game was dominated by City. Wolverhampton focused on defense and tried to counterattack with speedy options like Hwang and Pedro Neto. Wolverhampton took the lead early. In the 13th minute, Neto broke away from the opposition in the Wolverhampton half. He made a long run and crossed from deep in the right side of the penalty box. Neto’s cross found the back of the net after beating Ruben Dias. City pounded away for an equalizer, but went into halftime trailing 0-1.

The second half was all City. City struggled to break through Wolverhampton’s tight defense, which dropped its back line. In the 13th minute of the second half, City broke the deadlock. Oscar Bove was brought down in front of the left side of the penalty box, earning a free kick. Julian Alvarez took it, and it went into the top left corner.

With the lead in hand, City went on the offensive in search of an equalizer. But Wolverhampton defended well and added another goal. In the 21st minute of the second half, Nelson Semedo sent in a cross from the right that was headed away by a defender. Hwang Hee-chan came in from the back and shot, but his effort was blocked by the defense. Mateusz Cunha crossed the ball to Hwang, who rattled the net. The game ended in a 1-2 loss for City as Wolverhampton held on for the win.

Hwang’s scoring streak didn’t stop there. He struck first against Aston Villa in the eighth round. In the eighth minute of the second half, Neto cut down the right flank and sent a grounded cross into the box, where Hwang got a foot on it and slammed it into the back of the net. Although the game ended in a 1-1 draw as Wolverhampton were unable to hold on to their lead, it was a testament to Hwang’s goal-scoring prowess. He went on to score in three consecutive official matches against Ipswich, Man City, and Villa.

He was silent against Bournemouth in round nine, but scored again against Newcastle to continue his scoring streak. Hwang has already scored seven goals this season. Six of them in the league alone. He has already set a new PL career high. Hwang scored five league goals in 2021-22, his first season in the PL. He has already surpassed his previous PL goal tally after 10 games.

Hwang has a high goal conversion rate. Hwang has a goal conversion rate of 35.29%. That’s 6 goals on 17 shots. He is followed by Son Heung-min (26.67%), Elling Holland (26.19%), and Jerod Boehn (21.88%).

PL also highlighted Hwang’s goal conversion rate. “In recent weeks, Hwang has been playing as a right winger. He has good movement to play the role of a second striker. He has taken 16 of his 17 shots from inside the penalty box. He is a natural penalty box predator.”

Hwang’s good form has continued with the South Korean national team. Hwang scored a goal against Vietnam in an A match in October. He continued his goal-scoring form with a goal against Singapore in the first match of Group C of the second Asian qualifying round for the FIFA World Cup North America 2026 on Nov. 16. With the news of Hwang’s re-signing, he continues to expand his role at Wolverhampton.