Who is the best player in South Korea national team history?

From the 2002 World Cup semi-final fairytale to a new generation of Premier League stars, South Korea has consistently punched above its weight on the global stage. Who is the greatest Taeguk Warrior?

Son Heung-min

Tottenham Hotspur's captain and South Korea's greatest modern player, a prolific winger-forward who won the Premier League Golden Boot and is among the world's best at his position.

1/13

Park Ji-sung

Indefatigable, three-lunged midfielder who became the first Asian player to win the Champions League with Manchester United, famed for his tireless pressing and decisive big-game goals.

2/13

Cha Bum-kun

South Korea's first global superstar, a dynamic attacker who starred in the Bundesliga for Eintracht Frankfurt and Bayer Leverkusen in the 1970s-80s, still revered as the country's greatest ever.

3/13

Hong Myung-bo

Technically elegant libero and four-time World Cup participant who was named Asia's best player and is the emblematic figure of South Korean football's 2002 golden generation.

4/13

Lee Woon-jae

Commanding, reliable goalkeeper and long-serving captain who starred at the 2002 World Cup and maintained elite performance across 132 international appearances.

5/13

Lee Young-pyo

Reliable, attack-minded left-back who was a key member of the 2002 World Cup squad and later starred in the Premier League at Tottenham and PSV Eindhoven.

6/13

Seol Ki-hyeon

Industrious, technically sound forward who played at Wolverhampton Wanderers and Reading and scored South Korea's historic late equalizer against Portugal at the 2002 World Cup.

7/13

Hwang Ui-jo

Powerful, clinical centre-forward who became South Korea's second-highest scorer, thriving at Nottingham Forest and other European clubs while carrying the national team's attacking burden.

8/13

Lee Chun-soo

Exceptionally gifted, technically brilliant winger who was South Korea's most creative player of the mid-2000s, capable of defeating opponents with breathtaking skill on either flank.

9/13

Hwang Hee-chan

Dynamic, hardworking forward who scored the winner against Portugal at the 2022 World Cup to seal South Korea's knockout qualification in one of the tournament's most dramatic moments.

10/13

Kim Min-jae

Physically dominant, technically superb centre-back who moved from Napoli to Bayern Munich and is widely considered one of the best defenders in the world in the modern era.

11/13

Cho Gue-sung

Clinical, powerful striker who became a viral star at the 2022 World Cup with his two headers against Ghana, rising to become one of South Korea's most effective modern forwards.

12/13

Lee Dong-gook

South Korea's all-time leading scorer, a prolific centre-forward with an outstanding goalscoring record across multiple World Cups and Asian Cup tournaments.

13/13