Lee named MVP of the U-16 Asian Championship

This particular Barça youth forward may not be currently able to wear the blaugrana due to the FIFA ban, but his exploits on the international stage have certainly not gone unnoticed. 16-year-old Lee Seung Woo guided his native South Korea to the final of the U-16 Asian Championships, but couldn’t beat the North Korea, and therefore had to settle for a runner’s up medal. His efforts though, won him the Best Player award for the tournament, aside from winning the golden boot. Read more after the jump.

Seung-Woo Lee had a brilliant tournament at the U-16 Asian Championships this year, but his time in Thailand, where the tournament was held, ended with a bittersweet taste, as his South Korea side lost the all-Korean final against North Korea 2-1. He did however win both the Golden Boot and the Best Player award, after scoring 5 goals in the tournament, and providing 4 assists.

Seung-Woo Lee was a pleasant surprise in Thailand over these past few weeks, although he did not manage to appear in all matches. He missed South Korea’s opener against Oman, but was back for the match against Malaysia, where he scored a beautiful solo goal after beating five defenders.

His goal against Thailand, which was scored after a brilliant combination with his Barça teammate Jang Gyeol-hee, also attracted a lot of attention. Lee was once again decisive in the quarter-finals against Japan, and then was the architect behind South Korea’s thrashing of Syria in the semis, scoring a penalty goal and providing four assists.

However, in the final, Lee was unable to beat North Korea goalkeeper Ri-Chol Song, and the forward couldn’t hide his disappointment. “I’m very disappointed with this result, but we have played well and given our best. Now I intend to give my best in the World Cup next year.”

Lee, who was signed by Barça in 2011 following a brilliant performance with Daedong Elementary School in the Danone Nations Cup, added that “despite the fact that I finished as top scorer and was named the MVP, I’m sad about the result.” “I am able to play well thanks to my teammates and coaches and I would therefore like to thank them for these awards.”

Keeping a modest profile, Lee added, “I’m still very young and a still have many things to learn with both my national team and with Barça, as well as meeting more different styles of play.”

Source: Sport / Image: The-AFC.com