A starter in the last three Ligue 1 Uber Eats matches, having returned from international duty, South Korea's Lee Kang-in is performing well with Paris Saint-Germain and could prove invaluable to Luis Enrique this season.

In the four games since his return (three in Ligue 1 Uber Eats and one in the Champions League) - against Strasbourg (3-0), AC Milan (3-0), Stade Brestois (3-2) and Montpellier HSC (3-0) - Lee Kang-in has been on fire.

Shining through

The South Korea international, who signed for PSG this summer from Mallorca (La Liga), has put in some excellent performances and caught the eye of Spanish coach Luis Enrique. First by scoring his maiden Champions League goal (on 25 October), and then by nabbing his first Ligue 1 Uber Eats goal, against Montpellier on Friday. Both times at the Parc.

In between, he conjured a superb assist for Kylian Mbappé, using the outside of his boot to tee the Paris Saint-Germain vice-captain up to score in Brest.

A sporting boost...

"He doesn't lose the ball, generates [numerical] superiority with his dribbling, and has physical qualities in attack and defence", said Luis Enrique last week.

Lee Kang-in, however, was under a certain amount of pressure after several weeks' absence: he needed to remind his team-mates and observers that he is part of a team in the midst of a major reshuffle.

After starting in the first two rounds of the league season, the South Korean had to sit out the three weeks following 22 August with a left quadriceps injury. He then took part in the Asian Games with his national team (23 September - 8 October). It was a long absence, but one that the 22-year-old made the most of by winning the competition - and earning a valuable reduction in his military service for the rest of his career.

"Now that I'm fit and able to play, I'm very keen to wear the club shirt again and be useful to the team", Lee Kang-in told the club's media on his return.

He has been and will continue to be useful, with Luis Enrique emphasising his satisfaction at being able to count on such a versatile player: "He can play as a right or left winger, inside, in midfield or as a false No.9. His versatility can make all the difference."

...and marketing gold!

Lee Kang-in also brings an important marketing dimension by giving the club visibility in South Korea and, more broadly, in Asia - a market that PSG has clearly targeted in recent years. On Thursday, the club announced its first partnership with a Korean company, Paris Baguette.

This summer, the club toured Japan and South Korea, and Lee Kang-in's shirts sold like hotcakes at the start of the season. As the player himself pointed out: "With the national team, I saw a lot of fans wearing PSG shirts, which makes me very proud and makes me want to be even more effective and help the team grow in my country."

However, as Sébastien Wasels, the club's director for the Asia-Pacific region, assures us, "We never recruit for marketing reasons at Paris Saint-Germain. On the other hand, once we have players, we try to capitalise on their presence to try and help us develop."

100% pass rate against Montpellier

On the pitch, the Korean international (14 caps) demonstrated his quality once again in the Montpellier clash - not only by opening the scoring when he converted Achraf Hakimi's deft assist, but also by completing a stunning 100% of his passes (47), making ten crosses and completing three of five attempted dribbles for a total of 73 possessions in 64 minutes of action.

At a very young age, the player has shown his determination to make his mark in competitive environments, moving with his family to Valencia at the age of ten, without knowing a word of Spanish, to join the academy there. His parents and two older sisters gave up everything to follow him on this adventure. It's a gamble that has been well underway for several seasons now, and one that the first few weeks of the Paris No.19's stay in the capital looks to be paying off big-time.