Apparently he signed a 5 year contract extension, meaning he will stay until he is 19 years old. But I dont know if that is fully true or if it is official yet.
seems official now '축구 신동' 백승호, 바르셀로나와 5년 계약 http://news.naver.com/sports/index....&mod=read&office_id=001&article_id=0005148579
http://tvpot.daum.net/clip/ClipView.do?clipid=30673757 haven't seen the 1st clip before. What a shot.
This is great but people also have to realize that just because he's signed the contract, does not mean he will advance necessarily to the first team. It's still very competitive and they will advance Baek forward. La Masia is an academy, so it's not so much that Baek has a professional contract with them. I am going to bug some of my more versed cule friends to explain this to me. But this is a great news. Can't wait to see if he is advanced to Cadete B next season! That would be the next level for him.
The article linked a few posts above, dated July 6, 2011, says that he is 158 cm. That's not too bad. My brother was around that height at his age. As an adult, he's 184 cm. There's still hope! And more importantly, Xavi, Messi, Iniesta are all 170. I actually think Messi is slightly shorter than that, closer to 168, but that's beside the point. Height does not equal greatness nor success at Barça.
Agree but I'd extend that to say that to every club. Maradona and now Messi prove height should never be a primary determinant of who's a good player or not. “If God had wanted us to play football in the sky, He'd have put grass up there.” - Clough
His coolness and skill on ball kind of reminds me of Ko Jongsoo a little. Anyways great news. Has KFA restarted their youth program that plants prospects in youth programs in Europe?
this is soccer fellas, the great equalizer and just 1 of many reasons why it makes this sport mankind's sport. the level of scrutiny is crazy ya freaks. wishing the kid the best. it's such a pyramid. visual this pyramid. a straight line with just a dot in the middle as the tip. the tip is a tiny dot and signifies those who make it. that's why the likes of xavi/iniesta/messi are SO very $pecial. heck, anyone making a living playing soccer is very special.
I'm not too worried about his current slightness in height and weight. His father is a professor of physical education at Yonsei University. So I'm sure he's in good hands. And I'm very happy that he received a 5 year contract. That's an impressive feat in and by itself. I would think Barca doesn't usually do that unless they're completely committed to promoting the prospect through their ranks...
@Hodori: You're definitely right- 5 year contracts don't come very often unless they're dedicated to the player. BTW (unrelated to Baek Seung Ho and since we've been talking about this guy on this thread): I thought Lee Kang In was already at Valencia? There was a video and all... but a couple articles came out today about him joining today. I could have sworn i read somewhere he already joined and was playing this year... guess not? So serious!!
While this news is certainly promising, this is merely a confirmation of what most of us already knew. Barcelona want to keep him until he turns 18 to monitor his progress. Nothing more, nothing less. Until now, it was actually his family that paid money to receive the club's training and academic education at the Masia. This contract just means the club will provide everything for him at no cost.
Do you know how much Barcelona charges? There was an article in the NY times last year about Ajax's youth academy. The club basically pays for everything and the parents pay a nominal fee of 12 euros per year. I find it hard to believe that Barcelona would expect the parents to foot the entire bill. Or, maybe his Nike sponsorship paid for it. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/06/magazine/06Soccer-t.html?pagewanted=all
Perhaps that is what happened with Lee Kang In just recently, switching from a non-supported/semi-supported 'contract' to a full ride scholarship. And Kyopo, that NY Times article was outstanding. I remember reading it when you (or someone else) first posted it. Definitely worth the read.
There was a re-run last night on FSC 'bout Luis Suarez and his journey to 'Liverpool Stardom'. Anyway, he was talking about how Ajax gave/taught him everything and how grateful he is to the club.
http://news.naver.com/sports/index....64&article_id=0000002248&date=20110714&page=1 Nice video clip of him there.
some great quotes there, esp the last bit. the motivation is certainly there, and it seems the skills are there to back it up... good to know that he is adapting to the spanish culture well. looks like some good times ahead for the lad