Ji: Netting winner was 'fantastic'
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Park has enjoyed a great deal of success since signing for the Red Devils in 2005 but he suffered a low in 2008 when he was completely overlooked for the Champions League final.
Despite being one of the most industrious players in Sir Alex Ferguson's squad, Park did not even make the bench for the Moscow shoot-out triumph against Chelsea.
Coveted back home, and loved in Holland, where he performed well for Guus Hiddink at PSV Eindhoven before being lured to Old Trafford by Sir Alex Ferguson, it would have been easy for Park to throw in the towel.
Instead he just approached his task with renewed vigour.
"That night was a big disappointment for me," recalled the 29-year-old.
"I didn't want to leave because I felt I could do more to make it at United. That is why I stayed.
"I felt it would eventually happen and I believed we would reach another Champions League final, I just didn't expect it to be the following year."
Although Park finished a loser in Rome as United's hopes of retaining the trophy were wrecked by Barcelona, at least by being part of the squad he silenced some of the doubters who claimed he had only been bought because of his commercial value.
Having made two highly successful trips to Seoul since Park joined the club, United have certainly gained far in excess of the £4million they paid for the midfielder.
But Park denies he is a trophy asset.
"I didn't get a sense of just being signed for commercial reasons," he said.
"I wanted to show that Asian players could make it in Europe. But it was far more important for me just to become a better player. That is why I came to Europe from Asia.
"I do not think of myself as a standard bearer for Asian players. I just try to work hard for myself.
"Once I became more famous I was proud that people in Asia started to look towards me. All the Asian people respect me and watch me.
"But I don't want people to think of me as an Asian player. I am just a football player."
The reception Park receives when he goes home would rival anything David Beckham can generate in the UK.
He admits it can be slightly unnerving at times, although he finds earning his living half a world away provides a pretty significant buffer.
"Everything I do is watched," he said.
"It happened before I came to Manchester United but once I got here the scrutiny because even greater.
"All the games are live and lots of people watch them early in the morning.
"But when you are in England it is easy to deal with the attention. The people in Korea can't chase me all over the place here.
"I don't notice how excited they are. I can deal with that."
Park can also deal with the plaudits that have been heaped on him recently by Ferguson, who views the South Korean as one of the major beneficiaries of his new attacking system, with Wayne Rooney as a lone front-man.
Scepticism in the stands has also been erased, along with the self-doubt that Park carried as baggage when he first arrived at Old Trafford.
"I feel better about being at Manchester United," he said.
"When I first came I was a little bit worried that I would not be a success. But that always happens.
"You never know you are going to succeed until you have.
"What I was going to do at the time was more important. I just tried to do my best and once I started training I totally forgot about my concerns.
"Now I feel quite confident. Mentally I am in a good place.
"The fans have also been supporting me. It makes me more assured about showing my ability on the pitch."
While Park is hoping to face Liverpool, Owen Hargreaves could make his long-awaited comeback on Thursday for the reserves at Altrincham, where they will meet Burnley.
The midfielder was due to have a run-out last week but that failed to come to fruition as the club said the game did not fit in with his training schedule.
Hargreaves been sidelined since September 2008 following surgery on a knee injury.
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dunno why Park is not given consecutive matches to prove what he can do. one week he is playing, the next he is on the bench haiz.
he was playing well against Milan, but he wasnt playing against Fulham on the same week.
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Originally posted by Rooney9:
dunno why Park is not given consecutive matches to prove what he can do. one week he is playing, the next he is on the bench haiz.
he was playing well against Milan, but he wasnt playing against Fulham on the same week.
SAF's tatics lor..
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Originally posted by iceFatboy:
SAF's tatics lor..
ya he is the tinkerman
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Park Ji-sung celebrates his goal against Liverpool
Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has heaped praise on Ji-Sung Park after the South Korean scored the winning goal against arch-rivals Liverpool on Sunday.
Sir Alex signed Park from PSV Eindhoven in 2005, and at the time United were accused of signing the player purely for his commercial value.
But Park is now one of United's most trusted performers and usually features in all the club's vital matches.
Park stooped to score the goal which gave United their 2-1 win over Liverpool at Old Trafford, and Sir Alex said: "I didn't think that (Park was bought just to sell shirts). When I went to see him play in those Champions League semi-finals for PSV Eindhoven in 2005 I thought this is a player who understands football.
"He is intelligent and disciplined and he can play different positions. I had no issues about that at all. Someone is always going to take a runner on something like selling shirts. But you could say that about every player we have signed.''
Park said: "It was a great feeling to score against Liverpool. Derby matches are very important games, so to score the winner in one is a fantastic feeling. Doing it in front of the Stretford End was unbelievable.
"I want to score more goals for United and it doesn't matter who they are against. I know I should score more goals. I feel good scoring against the big teams like Arsenal, Milan and Liverpool, but I want that experience more often.''
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Fergie gets shirty over Park theory
Sir Alex Ferguson has rejected the theory Park Ji-Sung was signed merely to increase Manchester United's popularity in the Far East.
Park arrived at Old Trafford for £4million in 2005 but until this season rarely looked like establishing himself as part of Ferguson's first-choice XI.
Undoubtedly, though, Park's United connection has brought the Old Trafford outfit huge commercial spin-offs, with a million club credit cards currently in use in South Korea and two hugely successful pre-season trips to Seoul helping to cement them in the country's affections.
For Ferguson, however, this was a peripheral issue.
Even though he left Park out of his squad completely for the 2008 Champions League final, the United boss always felt the energetic midfielder - who first came to prominence with his performances in a Champions League semi-final against AC Milan for PSV Eindhoven in 2005 - had a major role to play for his team.
And now, in the system that fits Wayne Rooney so well, Ferguson has found Park to be ideally suited as well.
"I didn't think that (Park was bought just to sell shirts)," said the United boss.
"When I went to see him play in those Champions League semi-finals for PSV Eindhoven in 2005 I thought this is a player who understands football.
"He is intelligent and disciplined and he can play different positions. I had no issues about that at all.
"Someone is always going to take a runner on something like selling shirts. But you could say that about every player we have signed."
Anyone heading to the club Megastore for a Park shirt on Sunday was not doing it because of his nationality.
After scoring important goals against Arsenal and Milan already this year, the 29-year-old added another to his tally, hurling himself at Darren Fletcher's curling cross to give United a vital victory over Liverpool.
"It was a great feeling to score against Liverpool," he said. "Derby matches are very important games, so to score the winner in one is a fantastic feeling. Doing it in front of the Stretford End was unbelievable."
It was Park's 15th goal in 145 appearances for the Old Trafford outfit and given Chelsea failed to beat Blackburn at Ewood Park, gave his side priceless breathing space in the title race.
Given their goal difference advantage over second-placed Arsenal, the Red Devils are aware six wins from their remaining seven games, plus a draw from the crunch encounter with Chelsea at Old Trafford on April 3, could be enough to give them an unprecedented fourth championship on the trot and a 19th overall, one more than Liverpool's long-standing record.
And Park is eager to help them.
"I want to score more goals for United and it doesn't matter who they are against," he said. "I know I should score more goals. I feel good scoring against the big teams like Arsenal, Milan and Liverpool, but I want that experience more often."
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Ji-sung Park could barely contain his delight at scoring the winning goal against Liverpool in front of the Stretford End.
It’s the stuff of dreams for millions of Reds around the world, and the Korean, who turned in a potential Man of the Match-winning performance on Sunday, was delighted to make it reality.
”It was a great feeling,” Ji told MUTV. “Derby matches are very important games, so to score the winner in a derby is a fantastic feeling.
”Doing it in front of the Stretford End was unbelievable as well because you’re right next to the fans’ reaction. I was very happy [celebrating in front of them].”
Park was given a standing ovation when he was replaced by Paul Scholes late on in the match, and he says he hopes to impress the United faithful in the future with plenty more goalscoring displays.
”I want to score more goals for United and it doesn’t matter who they are against,” he said, referring to the fact that his last three goals have come against Liverpool, Milan and Arsenal.
“I know I should score more goals. I feel good scoring against the big teams like Arsenal, Milan and Liverpool, but I want to score more goals, hopefully I experience it more often.”
Park has been hugely effective when deployed as a search-and-destroy central midfielder against Milan and, most recently, Liverpool. It’s a role he relishes, but insists it’s not entirely alien to him.
”I enjoy playing in the middle of midfield. I have experience playing there before for PSV Eindhoven and for the Korean national team. So, for me, it doesn’t matter playing in the middle or on either wing.”
Most importantly, Park was pleased to be involved in aiding a vital win in United’s pursuit of title glory, which he says is now tantalisingly close.
”It was very important that we got over losing 1-0,” he said. “We did that and won in the end, it’s a big boost for the rest of the season. There are seven league games left and if we win them all then we will win the title. So we need to concentrate and keep up our performance levels.
"We don’t need to worry about Arsenal or Chelsea, because if we win our games then we will be champions. So that’s why we need to concentrate on our performances and our games.”