South Korean midfielder Hwang In-bum is in conflict with Olympiakos over the terms of his contract.
On the 11th (KST), Greek media outlet Sports FM detailed the reasons behind the conflict between Hwang and Olympiakos. Recently, it was reported that Hwang In-bum had requested a transfer from the club.
Greek newspaper Gazeta reported, “Hwang In-beom has asked Olympiacos for a transfer. He has two years left on his contract. Olympiakos is unable to tolerate his behaviour and is in discussions with the club’s legal team.” “The club confirmed that no one can be above the team. Hwang’s behaviour was an accident and unprofessional,” the report said.안전놀이터
Hwang returned to the European scene last summer when he joined Olympiacos. He went on to play a key role in the team, which went through three different coaches. He played 32 games, including the playoffs, in the Greek Superliga, scoring three goals and providing four assists. He also made three appearances in the UEFA Europa League knockout stages, his first ever European competition.
After establishing himself as a key midfielder for the club last season with five goals and four assists in 40 appearances across all competitions, Hwang was voted Olympiakos MVP and best new signing of the 2022/23 season at the Gate 7 International, where Olympiakos fans gather to exchange news.
After a breakthrough year, Hwang returned to Olympiacos ahead of the new season, but his absence from the starting line-up for pre-season friendlies has raised eyebrows.
Since Spaniard Diego Martinez took over as Olympiakos coach in June, Hwang hasn’t been picked since starting a pre-season match against Nordsjelland (Denmark) on 14 July. Instead, Iborra, João Carvalho (Portugal), Kostantinos Fortunis (Greece), Madi Kamara (Ghana) and Andreas Bouchalakis (Greece) have been given the nod.
In the friendly against Norwich City (England) on 30 July, he came on for Iborra in the second half, but only for a short time. In effect, a key midfielder from last season was dropped from the squad.
Hwang was also left out of the squad for the first leg of the UEFA Europa League third qualifying round for the 2023/24 season against Feyenoord (Belgium) at the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium on 11 November. It’s almost as if he has disappeared from Martinez’s plans.
This comes after Hwang, who had been an integral part of the team until last season, pushed for a move away from Martinez’s system, and the club appeared to be furious with him for not honouring his contract.
‘Sports FM’ claimed that the reason for the conflict between Hwang In-bum and Olympiakos is that they have different perceptions of the contract signed between the club and Hwang last summer.
“Hwang In-bum, who moved to Olympiakos from FC Seoul last summer, suddenly signed a one-year contract and claimed to be a free agent (FA),” the outlet explained.
“However, Inbum Hwang requested a two-year extension of his work permit from the Greek government in July,” it said, adding, “If he did not have two years left on his contract, why did he ask for a work permit until the summer of 2025?”
“Later, Hwang said that the club applied a buyout clause of €3 million (approx. 4.4 billion won) in exchange for him staying at Olympiakos,” the report said, “meaning that Hwang can move to a team that brings in €3 million this summer.”
As for the buyout clause, “Of course, this was denied by Olympiakos. They don’t want to sell Hwang In-bum unless they get 10-15 million euros (approximately 146-219 billion won) in transfer fees.”
According to the media, Hwang In-bum remains an Olympiacos player as no team has come forward to pay the transfer fee demanded by Olympiacos. The media outlet also speculated that “an overseas team may be behind the move, wanting to sign him.”
Hwang In-bum is a key part of the South Korean national football team’s midfield. The 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup will be held in Qatar in January, and the team will need him to play regularly and maintain his match fitness in order to win the tournament.
The summer 2023 transfer window closes on 2 September. With less than a month to go before the transfer window closes, it will be interesting to see how Hwang In-Bum’s transfer will be finalised.