Transfer Talk: Busan IPark

Which player(s) signed in the 2014/2015 windows has performed best for your team this season?

Photo courtesy of K League.com

Of the four players listed above who signed in the past window, I suppose the best performer would have to be Weslley. With Lim Sang-hyub off to the army and Fagner out of contract the team badly needed someone to replace those goals. Thus far of the three forwards signed, Weslley is the only one really chipping in. The 23-year old has scored four goals so far (team leading) while Bae Chun-seok and Bergson have yet to open their accounts. Noh Haeng-seok has been a decent addition to the defense, but his performances have been inconsistent and with Yoon Sung-hyo looking to revert back to a four-man defense, his regular starting spot is very much in jeopardy.

Though it's traditionally a quiet window, if your team were to pick someone up this window who would you like it to be?

In fantasy world it'd be Leo Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo since the team is badly lacking in the attacking department. But, I suppose this series aims at more realistic targets. My semi-real (but still not very) wish would be a return of fan favorite Park Jong-woo from Guangzhou R&F. Park had an excellent (so I'm told) first season with Guangzhou's "other club", but has run into some problems in year two. A return to his first pro club would be wonderful, and it would give Joo Se-jong an experienced, more defensive-minded player to play next to.

My first "realistic" pick is actually one I'm not entirely sure about in terms of availability. That would be a player that just left the club, Fagner. As far as I can find, Fagner has not signed with another club (perhaps he returned home to a smaller Brazilian team). It'd be great if we could bring him back to help with the goals. Of course, such a move would require the team to let go one of the three current Brazilians (Weslley, Bergson, and Nilson Junior), and I'd have no problem if the team parted ways with Bergson.

My second realistic pick is another player that left during the offseason, that would be Suwon defender Yeon Je-min. The centerback area isn't set by any measure for Busan this season with none of Lee Gyeong-ryeol, Noh Haeng-seok, Nilson Junior, Kim Chan-young, Kim Jong-hyuk, or Ahn Se-hee able to regularly nail down a spot. Yeon Je-min slotted in well with Busan last season, and would offer a young, but trusted option.

Photo courtesy of busanipark.com

Is there someone on the team you'd like to see loaned out or sold?

Back up keeper Lee Chang-geun is the first player that comes to mind. On the one hand it's great having a solid young keeper on the bench in case you need him, but on the other hand it feels like he should be playing more than he does. Lee Bum-young is just 26, and is clearly the number one keeper in Busan despite struggling a bit. Lee Chang-geun could be a very good keeper in the future and there are probably a couple teams that could use him now.

The other player that comes to mind is Kim Jin-kyu. Now, the caveat with Kim Jin-kyu is whether someone else would play him. Kim is an interesting case, a relative rarity in the K League in that he opted not to go play college ball AND signed with a K League side. Korea currently does not have a reserve league or any official competition for players after high school other than the pro leagues and the university league. The result is that Kim, while a potentially good player (currently features for U18 national team) is not playing regularly since Busan is not in a position to play and blood such a young player. He should go out on loan somewhere, but it's difficult to image any team in Korea that would give regular minutes to an 18-year old.

Kim Jin-kyu while at Gaesung High School (Busan U18 team)

Who would be a great signing for the league? 

Again, it depends on how realistic you want to be. A fantasy idea would be a big name from Europe who is going into their "retirement" years. Xavi headed off to Qatar, Pirlo may be leaving Juve, but the K League is certainly not amongst his potential destinations. Even players who were regulars (but not starts) in one of Europe's big five leagues would be nice, but unrealistic.

The next best thing would be a national team player. Ki Sung-yueng, Son Heung-min, Lee Chung-yong, someone like that. Again it's unrealistic as all of the NT's big players are in their primes and in Europe. It's hard to imagine any of them trading that for the relative anonymity of the K League.

Will they return to the K League one day? We can only hope. Photo courtesy of fcseoul.com

The midpoint between fantasy and realism would be one of the Korea NT players currently in China, Japan, or the Middle East. Someone who the general public knows from the national team, but could potentially leave their side for the comforts of home. This would be someone like Nam Tae-hee (Lekhwiya), Han Kook-young (Qatar SC), Lee Keun-ho (El Jaish), Park Jong-woo (Guangzhou R&F), Kim Young-gwon (Guangzhou Evergrande), Kim Min-woo (Sagan Tosu), or Kim Jin-hyeon (Cerezo Osaka). A player who not only could help whatever team they signed for on the pitch, but also offer the league/club some more visibility in the broader public.

I'd even take him coming back at this point.

Honestly I can't think of any super realistic option that would be a "great signing" for the league. Few teams are buyers in the current environment, so it's hard to see them shelling out any significant sum in terms of a signing fee or wages to attract a player with the quality to improve the league or attract additional interest. Any signings that come in (from outside the league) will likely be along the normal lines. A player from a second-tier Brazilian side, some smaller eastern European league, or something of the like.

Which team needs a transfer the most?

For obvious reasons it's hard to look past bottom-side Daejeon. The team is lacking in all areas, and desperately needs someone to either A) actually bring some quality to the side or B) give the team a spark/kick up the *ss. Certainly you could list a few teams that could use a transfer (basically any team not in the top four), but they're all so close together (even Busan is a couple good results away from the top six) it's hard to say the NEED one. Daejeon though needs one. Get that team some help quick!