[Anchor]

Let us introduce you to a 17-year-old rising star who has brought a rare glimmer of hope to South Korean football, which has been filled with frustrating news lately. Kim Ye-geon, who has been in the spotlight as a prodigy since childhood and scored a fantastic K League debut goal last weekend, has revealed his ambitious goal of winning the Ballon d'Or.

Reporter Lee Jeong-Chan met with him.

[Reporter]

Born in 2008, 17-year-old Kim Ye-geon, who debuted as a high school senior on a semi-professional contract, caught everyone's attention with his flashy individual skills from his very first match. Just two games into his career, he exploded with a spectacular K League 1 debut goal, becoming the star of the Hyundai Derby.

After signaling the birth of a new star with the same celebration as England's World Cup star Jude Bellingham, he officially signed a professional contract yesterday (July 13), achieving his dreams one by one.

[Kim Ye-geon/Forward, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors: My father shed tears. It felt like a dream. It felt like I was dreaming, and the things I had imagined (came true), and I scored a goal, so I was very happy.]

Six years ago, when he was an elementary school student, two videos of Kim Ye-geon featured on SBS Sports Mug garnered over 15 million views, drawing attention as a football prodigy.

[Kim Ye-geon (2020, then a 5th-grade elementary student): (Since people who watched Sports Mug) keep saying I am good and cool, I feel happy, and I will repay (them) later.]

Although his plans to play abroad were thwarted by the COVID-19 pandemic, he grew steadily within the Jeonbuk youth system.

In particular, last month, he proved that he could compete on the adult stage despite his 170cm height by scoring an unbelievable bicycle kick in the third division.

Watching the World Cup recently has made Kim Ye-geon's dreams even bigger.

[Kim Ye-geon/Forward, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors: I think I set a goal that I really want to go to the next World Cup. (Furthermore) I want to win the Ballon d'Or, I think that is it.]

He pledged to become a player who possesses not only skill but also good character.

[Kim Ye-geon/Forward, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors: 'Kim' Ye-geon means being 'Ye' (polite) and 'Geon' (healthy). I want to be a great person like Shohei Ohtani, always receiving praise for my attitude and character. Please keep an eye on me.]

Reported by Yang Doo-won | Video by Hwang Ji-young | Graphics by Han Song-yeon