Manchester United’s Park Ji-sung celebrates with the Champions League trophy. / AFP-Yonhap



By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reporter

A season of redemption ended with a whimper for Manchester United's Park Ji-sung, who was reduced to a spectator at Luzhniki Stadium in what would have been the biggest match of his football life.

Reemerging from an injury-forced hiatus to give the Red Devils a boost in their double chase for domestic and European glory, Park was anticipated to become the first Asian player to be featured in a Champions League final.

However, the 27-year-old winger failed to completely hide his disappointment after being snubbed by manager Alex Ferguson in the showdown against Chelsea Wednesday in Moscow.

Ferguson's decision to select Owen Hargreaves over Park on the right wing was somewhat of a surprise, as the England international had not played there once this season.

However, Hargreaves justified his manager's faith with his ball-winning skills and pitch coverage for 120 minutes and eventually converted in the penalty shootout, which United won 6-5.

Still, it could have definitely been a hit to Park's pride that he wasn't even left among the substitutes, who included little-used Darren Fletcher, whose clear value to the team is debatable at the moment.

``I didn't play today, but I am satisfied because our team won the crown," Park told reporters after the match, denying speculations that he was nicked up during practice ahead of the match.

``Manager Ferguson told me that I would not be named in the lineup before the game. There was nothing wrong with my condition.

``If I get a chance to play in this type of a game in the future, I will perform better than I am doing now."

Perhaps a little money could ease Park's frustration. An incentive clause in his contract signed in 2006 states that Park receives a bonus that equals 10 percent of his salary, or about 280,000 pounds ($552,000), should the team win the Premier League or the Champions League title.

With United accomplishing the double this season, at the repeated expense of Chelsea, Park now awaits an extra 560,000 pounds to be wired to his bank account.

Add that with a bonus of 250,000 pounds promised to each United player for their European Cup triumph, and Park is certainly returning home with an overweight purse.

Park first arrived at Old Trafford in 2005 and was featured in 33 of United's 38 league matches in his first Premier League season.

However, the South Korean international saw his progress slow by injuries in the next two seasons, missing three months with an ankle problem in 2006 and suffering a season-ending knee injury in 2007.

Recovering from an offseason surgery on his right knee, Park made a belated season debut on Dec. 27 against Sunderland, his first action in nine months, but was mostly anonymous for the next three months as Ferguson yanked around his minutes.

However, his stellar performance against AS Roma in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal last month proved as a turning point for Park as he reestablished his status with the team.

Park is now seen as a potential successor to Ryan Giggs, the iconic wide attacker who became United's all-time appearance leader with 759 after checking in for Paul Scholes in the second half at Luzhniki Stadium.

Ferguson had selected Park over Giggs in key matches, including both legs of the Champions League semifinals against Barcelona, which led to expectations that the Korean winger would be picked to start against Chelsea.

Park is lauded for his industrious style, which earned him the nickname ``Three-Lung Park" from British supporters, and solid skills that conform him as an ideal attack partner to the team's superstar scorers, like Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney.

Park has yet to be assured automatic status and is expected to compete with Giggs and Portuguese winger Nani for minutes next season. However, Park's regained fitness suggests that the world has yet to see the best of him.

thkim@koreatimes.co.kr