Ji Dong-won (, or ; born 28 May 1991) is a South Korean professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a forward for Suwon FC.

Early life

Born in

Chuja Islands The Chuja Islands () are a group of 42 islands in the Jeju Strait, about halfway between Jejudo and the southern coast of Jeollanamdo. Only four islands are inhabited: Sangchuja ("Upper Chuja"), which is connected by a bridge to Hachuja ("Low ...

, an archipelago of

Jeju City Jeju City (; ) is the capital of the Jeju Province in South Korea and the largest city on Jeju Island. The city is served by Jeju International Airport (IATA code CJU). Located on an island off the Korean Peninsula, Jeju has mild, warm weather ...

, Ji began his football career at Gwangyang Jecheol High School. ( Jeonnam Dragons under-18 team). One of the best prospects in South Korea, Ji was sent to an English club

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

in 2007 by the

Korea Football Association The Korea Football Association () is the governing body of football and futsal within South Korea. It sanctions professional, semi-professional and amateur football in South Korea. Founded in 1933, the governing body became affiliated with ...

. After a brief spell in Reading Academy, Ji moved back to his home country to rejoin Jeonnam Dragons' youth team, where he started his career. It was announced in November 2009 that Ji was promoted to the first team of Jeonnam Dragons.

Club career

Jeonnam Dragons

Ji scored 13 goals during 29 appearances in his first professional season including a hat-trick against Gyeongnam in the 2010 Korean FA Cup. He became a national player due to his notable performance, although he conceded the K League Young Player of the Year award to his rival Yoon Bit-garam. The next year, Ji agreed a move to Premier League side Sunderland in the summer transfer window.

Sunderland

In June 2011, Ji agreed a deal to join

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

of the English

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

as a summer transfer after impressing manager

Steve Bruce Stephen Roger Bruce (born 31 December 1960) is an English professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Association football, player who was a centre-back in a twenty-year playing career. He is currently the head coa ...

with his performance in the 2011 Asian Cup, in which he scored four goals and provided two assists in six games. He signed a three-year deal for an undisclosed fee (believed to be around £2 million). Upon joining the club, Ji was given a number 17 shirt ahead of the new season. Ji made his first appearance for his new club in a 1–1 draw with

Arminia Bielefeld DSC Arminia Bielefeld (; full name: ; commonly known as Arminia Bielefeld (), also known as ''Die Arminen'' or ''Die Blauen'' ), or just Arminia (), is a German sports club from Bielefeld, North Rhine-Westphalia. Arminia is most well known as ...

in the club's pre-season tour of Germany. He scored his first goal for Sunderland in a pre-season friendly against Darlington. Ji made his league debut for Sunderland on 13 August 2011 coming on for Asamoah Gyan in the 66th minute against

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

. Ji scored his first Premier League goal in the 90th minute against Chelsea from a

Nicklas Bendtner Nicklas Bendtner (; born 16 January 1988) is a Danish former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward. His preferred position was centre-forward, but he has also played on the Forward ...

assist on 10 September 2011, to which Sunderland lost 2–1. Just 12 minutes after coming on as substitute in the second–half against

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

on 1 January 2012, Ji scored the winning goal in the 90th minute, in a 1–0 win. However, his first team opportunities at Sunderland was limited, due to his fitness and he appeared invariably as a late substitute. As a result, he played in the reserve side to regain his match fitness. Towards end of the 2011–12 season, Ji's first team opportunities was further limited by new Manager

Martin O'Neill Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill, (born 1 March 1952) is a Northern Irish professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Association football, player who played as a midfielder. After a brief early career in the Irish Leag ...

. Despite this, Ji went on to make the total of 21 appearances and scoring 2 times in all competitions. Ahead of the 2012–13 season, Ji was told by Manager O’Neill that he needs to develop in the Premier League physically if he is fully deliver on his potential. However, he failed to appear in the first team throughout the first half of the season and appeared in the reserve side instead. In the 2013–14 season, Ji made his first Sunderland appearance in over a year, where he came on as a second-half substitute, in a 1–0 loss against

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

in the opening game of the season. He appeared in the first team under the management of

Paolo Di Canio Paolo Di Canio (born 9 July 1968) is an Italian former professional footballer and manager. During his playing career he made over 500 league appearances and scored over one hundred goals as a Forward (association football), forward. He primari ...

and rejected a £5 million bid from an unnamed club for him. However, after Di Canio, Ji was hardly featured in the first team following a new management of Gus Poyet. On 1 January 2014, when he made his first start, in his first appearance under Poyet, in a 1–0 loss against

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

, in what turns out to be his last appearance. Although he went on to make the total of seven appearances by the time of his departure, it was revealed that Sunderland failed gain international clearance from the German Football Association, resulting a fine by the Premier League. During his time at Sunderland, Ji earned a cult hero status among the club's supporters.

Loan to FC Augsburg

When his opportunities in Sunderland were limited, Ji was linked with Jeonnam Dragons and

FC Augsburg Fußball-Club Augsburg 1907 e. V., commonly known as FC Augsburg (), is a Football in Germany, German professional football club based in Augsburg, Bavaria. FC Augsburg play in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the German football league system. T ...

. On 1 January 2013, Ji signed for FC Augsburg on loan for the rest of the season, where his national teammate midfielder Koo Ja-cheol was also on loan. On 20 January 2013, Ji made his Augsburg debut against

Fortuna Düsseldorf Düsseldorfer Turn- und Sportverein Fortuna 1895 e.V., commonly known as Fortuna Düsseldorf (), is a Football in Germany, German football club based in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, that competes in the 2. Bundesliga. Founded in 1895, Fo ...

. On 24 February, he scored his first goal for Augsburg in a 2–1 win over 1899 Hoffenheim. On 14 April, Ji scored two goals against

Eintracht Frankfurt Eintracht Frankfurt e.V. () is a German professional sports club based in Frankfurt, Hesse. It is best known for its football club, which was founded on 8 March 1899. The club currently plays in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the German footb ...

, single-handedly clinching a 2–0 victory for his side. Afterwards, he also scored in two victories against

VfB Stuttgart Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V. (), commonly known as VfB Stuttgart (), is a German professional sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club's Association football, football team is currently part of Germany's f ...

and Greuther Fürth, helping Augsburg avoid relegation. The club remained interested in signing Ji at the end of the season on a permanent basis, but failed to reach the deadline of purchase option. On 17 January 2014, Sunderland announced that Ji had signed a contract with FC Augsburg on a permanent switch for an undisclosed fee until the end of the 2013–14 Bundesliga season and would sign for

Borussia Dortmund Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, often known simply as Borussia Dortmund () or by its initialism BVB (), or just Dortmund by International fans, is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is ...

on 1 July 2014. On 25 January 2014, Ji started his second spell with FC Augsburg in style against his future employer Borussia Dortmund; after being substituted into the game with 20 minutes left to play, Ji scored a header to draw the game 2–2. Since making his debut for the club, Ji continued to remain in the first team for the rest of the season, even though he suffered injuries later on.

Borussia Dortmund

Ji signed a four-year contract with

on 1 July 2014 after finishing his loan spell with Augsburg. However, he only made appearances with the reserve team, prompting a return to Augsburg. This also combined with injuries as well. Prior his move to Augsburg, Ji found the six months spell at with injuries and playing in the reserve side, as "difficult" there.

Return to FC Augsburg

On 22 December 2014, after failing to appear competitively for Borussia Dortmund, Ji signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with FC Augsburg, until 30 June 2018. On 5 November 2015, Ji scored his first Europa League goal in a 4–1 win over AZ. During the 2015–16 season, however, he struggled to regain his form due to his repetitive injuries and failed to score in the Bundesliga. In the 2016–17 season, Ji started the season well when he was a given a handful of first team appearances for the side and found himself competing in the attacking midfield position with Takashi Usami, Caiuby and Jonathan Schmid. He then scored his first goal of the season, in a 2–1 loss against

RB Leipzig RasenBallsport Leipzig e.V. (), commonly known as RB Leipzig or informally as Red Bull Leipzig, is a German professional association football, football club based in Leipzig, Saxony. The club was founded in 2009 by the initiative of the company ...

on 30 September 2016. The following month, on 26 October 2016, he scored again in a 3–1 loss against Bayern Munich in the second round of the DFB–Pokal. By the end of 2016, Ji added two more goals against Eintracht Frankfurt and Borussia Dortmund. As the 2016–17 season progressed, Ji began playing into a forward role following the absence of Alfreð Finnbogason and Raúl Bobadilla but struggled to score under the new position. Despite this, Ji played all 34 matches in the 2016–17 Bundesliga. On 1 March 2019, Ji scored twice against his former club

and led Augsburg to a stunning 2–1 upset over the league leaders.

FC Seoul

After a long spell in Augsburg, Ji moved to Mainz 05 and

Eintracht Braunschweig Braunschweiger Turn- und Sportverein Eintracht von 1895 e.V., commonly known as Eintracht Braunschweig () or BTSV (), is a German football and sports club based in Braunschweig, Lower Saxony. They compete in the 2. Bundesliga, the second tier o ...

, but wasn't impressive in both clubs. On 7 July 2021, it was announced that Ji would join

FC Seoul FC Seoul () is a South Korean professional Association football, football club based in Seoul that competes in the K League 1, the top flight of Football in South Korea, South Korean football. The club is owned by GS Sports, a subsidiary of GS G ...

. He left the club at the end of 2023 season as the contract expired.

Suwon FC

In January 2024, Ji joined Suwon FC.

International career

After representing the under-20 side, Ji was called up for the under-23 team prior to the

2010 Asian Games The 2010 Asian Games (), officially known as the XVI Asian Games () and also known as Guangzhou 2010 (), were a regional multi-sport event held from November 12 to 27, 2010 in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China (although several events commenced ear ...

. During the bronze medal match against

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

, he scored dramatic equaliser and winning goal in the 88th and 89th minute respectively, bringing a 4–3 victory and a medal. Ji was called up to the senior team ahead of the

2011 AFC Asian Cup The 2011 AFC Asian Cup was the 15th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held in Qatar from 7 to 29 January 2011. It was the secon ...

. He made his senior debut and scored in a 1–0 win over

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

on 30 December 2010. He was selected for the Asian Cup team after showing his worth in the friendly. He scored two goals in a group match against

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. Ji then scored twice for the second time in the third place match against

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

, earning a bronze medal. During the tournament, Ji scored four goals in six games, catching

manager

's eye. Two years later, Ji participated in the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

. He was a substitute until the end of the group stage, but appeared as a starter in the quarter-finals against

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

. He scored the opening goal against Great Britain, remunerating his manager Hong Myung-bo for believing him. He won a bronze medal after his team defeated

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

in the bronze medal match. Ji played in the

2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for list of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil fr ...

as a substitute. He made two appearances against

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

and

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

in the group stage.

Personal life

Ji is nicknamed the "Tuna", because his name was the same as Dongwon Industries, a company famous for

canned tuna A tuna (: tunas or tuna) is a saltwater fish that belongs to the Tribe (biology), tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae (mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, rangin ...

in South Korea. In June 2017, Ji married Kang Ji-eun, an older sister of Kang Ji-young, a former member of K-pop girl group Kara. The couple first met in 2015.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list South Korea's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Ji goal''.

Honours

South Korea U23 *

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

bronze medal:

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years for athletes of Asia. The Games were regulated by Asian Games Federation from the 1951 Asian Games, first Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, until ...

bronze medal:

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

South Korea *

AFC Asian Cup The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second-oldest c ...

third place:

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

Individual *

Korean FA Cup The Korea Cup (), formerly the Korean FA Cup, is a national Association football, football cup knockout competition of South Korea, held annually by the Korea Football Association (KFA). Before the competition was established in 1996, two simil ...

top goalscorer:

Notes

References

External links

*
Ji Dong-won – National Team Stats
at KFA * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ji, Dong-Won 1991 births Living people Men's association football forwards Footballers from Jeju City South Korean men's footballers South Korean expatriate men's footballers South Korea men's under-20 international footballers South Korea men's under-23 international footballers South Korea men's international footballers Jeonnam Dragons players Sunderland A.F.C. players FC Augsburg players Borussia Dortmund II players Borussia Dortmund players SV Darmstadt 98 players 1. FSV Mainz 05 players Eintracht Braunschweig players FC Seoul players K League 1 players Premier League players Bundesliga players 2. Bundesliga players 3. Liga players Expatriate men's footballers in England South Korean expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate men's footballers in Germany South Korean expatriate sportspeople in Germany 2011 AFC Asian Cup players Footballers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Olympic footballers for South Korea Olympic medalists in football Olympic bronze medalists for South Korea Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics 2014 FIFA World Cup players Asian Games medalists in football Footballers at the 2010 Asian Games Asian Games bronze medalists for South Korea Medalists at the 2010 Asian Games 2019 AFC Asian Cup players Suwon FC players 21st-century South Korean sportsmen