What happened to Han Kwang-song, the 'North Korean Cristiano Ronaldo' who disappeared for three years
In 2019, Juventus signed a North Korean youngster compared to Cristiano Ronaldo and his life since then has been all sorts of crazy.
Over the years, several players have been compared to the five-time Ballon d'Or winner.
Nobody has ever managed to live up to the moniker the 'Next Cristiano Ronaldo', but they've still been allowed to forge a decent career in the game.
In the case of Han Kwang-song, the decision was taken out of his hands.
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Han moved to Italy as a teenager in 2015 as part of a government-sponsored talent scheme.
The forward spent time in Perugia's academy before eventually signing for Cagliari.
During that time, Han turned down a move to Liverpool despite meeting with Reds scout Barry Hunter.
He famously told Han he'd be given the chance to meet Steven Gerrard, with the youngster admitting he had no idea who the Reds legend was.
"The scout said: do you know Steven Gerrard?," Mauro Costorella of Perugia’s academy told First Time Finish.
Han shook his head, quite sheepishly. Costorella continued: "The scout was very surprised, he said: 'How is it possible you don’t know Steven Gerrard?' The scout turned around and said it was the first time he showed a picture of Gerrard to someone and they did not instantly go 'wow'.
Han eventually made his debut for Cagliari at the age of 19 and scored his first goal against Torino in 2017.
In goal for Torino at that time was former Manchester City and England goalkeeper Joe Hart.
After failing to nail down a starting spot for Cagliari, Han decided to join Perugia in Serie B on loan. His performances there caught the eye of Juventus, who decided to sign him on a two-year loan deal in 2019.
Han mainly played for Juventus' U23s in Serie C but did make the matchday squad for a game against Lecce in October of that year. It made him the first Asian player to make a Juventus squad.
Here is where things start to get bonkers. Juventus purchased Han for €3.5 million in January 2020 before selling him to Qatar outfit Al-Duhail six days later for €7 million. The Italian giants had managed to make a tidy profit.
The youngster found his feet in Qatar, helping Al-Duhail to Qatar Stars League Trophy glory. He'd found a place to fulfil his potential. In March 2021, his life changed forever.
Han became a victim of politics surrounding North Korea's nuclear weapons programme. In March 2021, the United Nations introduced sanctions which prevented North Korean citizens from working abroad.
The United Nations ruled his transfer from Juventus to Al-Duhail was a violation of international sanctions and his contract with the Qatari outfit was terminated.
Han was deported from Qatar and put on a plane, initially set for Rome. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, North Korea closed its borders and allowed no flights in and out of the country.
It reportedly resulted in Han being stuck in an unknown embassy for several years. Han isn't allowed to give interviews and it means we're likely never to find out exactly what went on.
Now 25-years-old, Han made his first professional appearance in three years in November when he scored in North Korea's 2026 World Cup qualifier against Myanmar.
He's still without a club and it remains to be seen if he'll feature in North Korea's next game against Japan on Thursday.
Daniel Marland