Man U midfielder Park Ji-sung retires from international football

LONDON - Manchester United midfielder Park Ji-sung has retired from international football after playing his 100th match in the Asian Cup semi-final defeat by Japan on Tuesday.

Park was not included in South Korea’s team for the 3-2 win over Uzbekistan in the third-place match in Qatar.

His international debut was in 2000 as part of the team which reached the World Cup semi-finals in 2002, the best performance by an Asian team in the competition.

South Korea coach Cho Kwang-rae said: “Two players of our team Park Ji-sung and Lee Young-pyo are retiring today from international football, they’ve done a remarkable job for the prosperity of Korean football.

“It would be better if I could retain both of them in the national team, but other players have done an excellent job.”

Fellow South Korean players threw both Park and Lee into the air in celebration, the BBC reports.

“They have been really great players for 10 years and I am really proud of them and they showed to the people all over the world that Korean football is getting better,” midfielder Ki Sung-yeung commented.

In 2009, Park became the first South Korean to play in a Champions League final when Manchester United lost to Barcelona. (ANI)