Scottish club Hearts still pushing for Lee Seung-woo: Reports

Lee Seung-woo [YONHAP]

Heart of Midlothian remain interested in acquiring Lee Seung-woo, although whether the Suwon FC forward is interested in a move to the Scottish Premiership remains unclear.

Edinburgh Evening News reported Wednesday that the club remains keen to sign Lee and have offered a three-year contract, but Suwon are unwilling to part with the star striker.

According to the report by Barry Anderson, who handles Hearts news for the Scottish paper, talks are focused on whether the Hearts offer has triggered a buyout clause in Lee's contract.

What the details of that buyout clause might be remain unclear, but such clauses are normally focused on a monetary figure or the status of the club offering the deal. Lee's contract could include a buyout clause that mentions a "top European club," for example, leaving Hearts to argue that they fulfill that requirement.

It's also unclear whether Lee is interested in the move. According to multiple local reports, Lee's agency Olive Creative have said that while the former Barcelona prospect has received interest from multiple clubs, he is currently committed to Suwon.

Lee returned to Korea in November last year after his contract with Belgian club Sint-Truiden was terminated, leaving him without a European club for the first time since he was 12 years old. On Dec. 3 he signed with K League club Suwon FC, joining the domestic league for the first time in his career with his own hometown team.

Lee is a product of the Barcelona football academy and was once considered a footballing prodigy touted as the “Korean Messi.”

But despite a strong youth career — Lee appeared for Korean youth teams across a number of tournament and was MVP of the 2014 AFC U-16 Championship — Lee’s transition to the adult game has not been smooth.

After years in the Barcelona academy, the closest Lee got to the top flight was a single appearance with the B team before he moved to Hellas Verona on a four year deal.

In 2019, Lee joined Belgian side Sint-Truiden. In Belgium, he was given even fewer opportunities, making his debut four months after he joined the club.

Lee spent most of last year on loan to Portuguese side Portimonense, where he made just six appearances.

But in 20 appearances with Suwon this year, Lee has scored 10 goals and picked up two assists. He is currently out for a couple of games after receiving a red card last week.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]