Hwang Hee-chan could reunite with Jesse Marsch in rumored Leeds move

Hwang Hee-chan [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Despite being firmly under contract at Wolverhampton Wanderers, Hwang Hee-chan now finds himself in the transfer rumor books with reports of a possible attempt by Leeds United to sweep in and claim the Korean midfielder.

Hwang, who was on loan with Wolves last season, signed a four-year contract with the club in January that officially went into effect this summer, said to be valued at between £11.9 million and £14 million ($19 million and $22 million).

But Hwang has also been struggling in front of goal with the midlands club. He has failed to score for Wolves for 17 games, 16 in the Premier League and Tuesday’s Carabao Cup fixture. He last found the back of the net on Feb. 24, scoring his fifth goal of his debut Premier League season against Arsenal.

During that period Hwang has picked up two assists and a goal for the national team against Chile on June 6. He has continued to look good on the pitch and his form has appeared solid, suggesting that his sole problem is converting — and potentially playing under manager Bruno Lage.

But while the rumored move to Leeds might seem like a step down — Wolves finished the 2021-22 season in 10th place and Leeds finished one outside of the relegation zone in 17th — for Hwang it could be an opportunity to turn things around. Leeds has one crucial thing that Wolves does not: Jesse Marsch.

Leeds manager Marsch and Hwang have plenty of history together, and Hwang has repeatedly proved to be a deadly midfielder with Marsch at the helm.

Marsch was appointed as manager of Red Bull Salzburg in 2019, leading the team to win the double in his first season. Hwang was one of the three stars of Marsch's attacking line, alongside Erling Haaland, now at Manchester City, and Takumi Minamino of Monaco.

Hwang scored 11 goals in the Austrian Bundesliga that season and picked up 12 assists. He also scored three Champions League goals with five assists, an OFB Cup goal with five assists and a Europa League goal.

Following that explosive season, Hwang moved to RB Leipzig. A year later, Marsch joined him as manager, but the pair were only reunited for three games — during which Hwang picked up a single assist — before Hwang was shipped off on loan to Wolves.

Six months later, in February this year, Marsch followed Hwang to the Premier League, joining Leeds as manager.

If Hwang were to move to Leeds and reunite with Marsch, it could provide a huge opportunity for him to pick up his productivity in the Premier League. If the pair are able to work together as well as they did in the 2019-20 season, Hwang's long dry spell could quickly become a thing of the past.

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