Be wary of Gamba, says Park
17/12/2008 16:52
South Korean international Park Ji-Sung has warned his Manchester United
teammates not to treat Gamba Osaka lightly in their FIFA Club World Cup
semifinals, saying Asian football has improved vastly.
The South Korean star
spent three seasons in Japan playing for Kyoto Purple Sanga before Guus Hiddink
whisked him off to PSV Eindhoven in 2003, which subsequently led to his move to
Manchester.
"I've got some very happy memories of playing for Kyoto," he was
quoted as saying on website of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
"While
I was there we got promoted to the J-League and we also won the Emperor's Cup,
so it is really good to go back.
"I'm looking forward to showing the people
there that I've grown up and that I'm a much better player than when I
left."
Park still follows the J-League and while he admits there is still a
gap between European and Asian football, he said it was getting
smaller.
"It's amazing to think how much Asian football has developed over
the past ten years," he told FIFA.com.
"There's still a big difference
between European and Asian football, but the gap is getting smaller all of the
time.
"I think a big part of that is because there are a lot of Asian players
in Europe nowadays. They're learning new skills and getting better experience
and I'd fully recommend Asian players to make the move.
"It's going to make
them, as individuals, and Asian football better."
Park is anticipating a
tough match against Asian champions Gamba in front of a vocal home crowd on
Thursday, but is hopeful of progressing to Sunday's final.
"It's going to be
a difficult match for us. We've played a lot of games in December and we've had
to make a long journey to Japan. There's also the nine-hour time difference to
contend with, " he said.
Xinhua
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