Worries arise over Koos attempt at Swiss move

By Yi Whan-woo

Jeju United midfielder Koo Ja-cheol’s attempt to move to a foreign league has raised concerns regarding the future of key South Korean footballers.

Koo is looking to join Swiss club BSC Young Boys, which stress strength rather than skill, contrary to the usual purpose of playing in the European leagues to better technique.

The midfielder left for Switzerland Thursday to visit the club and discuss a transfer with a buyout condition, though details were not disclosed.

The buyout condition agreed by Koo and Jeju when renewing his contract would give the Young Boys the rights over Koo once the Swiss club pays Jeju $1 million.

“The decision comes solely from Koo and his agent,” a Jeju official told The Korea Times, Thursday.

“Although we will not be able to claim priority over Koo once they reach an agreement, it would be good for him if he can grow as an international,” she added.

The worry lies in the fact that the Swiss league is not regarded as a place where local players can learn advanced football and contribute to the national team.

Koo is not only a key player for his club but also for the national squad. He played in the World Cup this year and has been included South Korea’s preliminary 47-man roster for next month’s Asian Cup in Qatar.

Jeju manager Park Kyung-hoon expressed concern over Koo, was quoted as saying “He should aim for more advanced leagues such as the Dutch or French ones even if he can’t join a good team.”

“The Swiss league is not much different from the K-League,” Park added.

Jeju released another player this year, defender Cho Young-hyung. Cho currently plays for Qatar’s Al-Rayyan. The defender is to play for La Liga’s FC Malaga after playing for the Middle East club for two years, a move which was also viewed skeptically by local critics.