Jong Il-gwan

Jong Il-gwan (Korean: 정일관; Hanja: 鄭日冠; born 30 October 1992) is a North Korean professional footballer who plays as a striker for DPR Korea Premier Football League club Rimyongsu[2] and the North Korea national team.[3] He is the all-time top scorer for North Korea.

In this Korean name, the family name is Jong.

Jong Il-gwan
Jong lining up with North Korea in 2012
Personal information
Date of birth (1992-10-30) 30 October 1992
Place of birth Sariwon, North Korea
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Striker
Team information
Current team
 Rimyongsu
Number 30
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011–2017 Rimyongsu
2017–2018 Luzern 4 (1)
2018 → FC Wil (loan) 2 (0)
2018– Rimyongsu[1]
International career‡
North Korea U20 3 (0)
2011– North Korea 79 (29)
Medal record
Representing  North Korea
Men's football
Asian Games
Silver medal – second place 2014 Incheon Team
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 27 March 2018
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 21 March 2024
Jong Il-gwan
Chosŏn'gŭl
정일관
Revised RomanizationJeong Ilgwan
McCune–ReischauerChŏng Il'gwan

Club career

On 24 November 2010, he was crowned AFC Youth Player of the Year.[4] On 5 June 2012, numerous reports surfaced linking the player with a move to Newcastle United[5] with later reports strongly linking him with FK Partizan[6] and PSV Eindhoven.[7] He was transferred to Swiss Super League club FC Luzern in July 2017, signing a two-year contract.[8]

On 1 August 2022, Jong won his club's first ever Hwaebul Cup after scoring a 96th minute winner against April 25 in a 2–1 win.

International career

Jong made his senior international debut for North Korea on 26 March 2011 against Iraq in a 2–0 defeat.

Jong made his EAFF preliminaries debut in 2012 against Chinese Taipei. He scored his first competition goal in a 5–0 win against Guam in the second preliminary round. Jong scored a brace in 2014 against the same opposition for the second preliminary round, helping his side qualify for the final tournament. He scored another goal against Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong in 2016 for the 2017 edition's second preliminaries. On 16 December 2017, Jong scored a stunning free kick against China in a 1–1 draw.

For the 2019 Asian Cup, Jong was named captain of the national team. Against Qatar, he was sent off towards the end of the match.

On 21 November 2023, Jong scored his first international hat-trick against Myanmar.

Career statistics

International
As of match played 21 November 2023
North Korea score listed first, score column indicates score after each Jong goal[9]
List of international goals scored by Jong Il-gwan
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.9 April 2011Dasarath Rangasala Stadium, Kathmandu, Nepal   Nepal1–01–02012 AFC Challenge Cup qualification
2.19 March 2012 Turkmenistan1–12–12012 AFC Challenge Cup
3.10 September 2012Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta, Indonesia Indonesia2–02–0Friendly
4.3 December 2012Mong Kok Stadium, Mong Kok, Hong Kong Guam5–05–02013 EAFF East Asian Cup qualification
5.16 November 2014Taipei Municipal Stadium, Taipei, Taiwan1–05–12015 EAFF East Asian Cup preliminary
6.2–1
7.3 September 2015Bahrain National Stadium, Riffa, Bahrain Bahrain1–01–02018 FIFA World Cup qualification
8.13 October 2015Kim Il Sung Stadium, Pyongyang, North Korea Yemen1–01–0
9.17 November 2015 Bahrain2–02–0
10.14 August 2016UiTM Stadium, Shah Alam, Malaysia Iraq1–01–0Friendly
11.21 August 2016Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium, Paroi, Malaysia1–01–1
12.24 August 2016Shanghai Stadium, Shanghai, China United Arab Emirates1–02–0
13.10 October 2016Rizal Memorial Stadium, Manila, Philippines Philippines1–03–1
14.6 November 2016Mong Kok Stadium, Mong Kok, Hong Kong Chinese Taipei1–02–02017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship qualification
15.12 November 2016 Hong Kong1–01–0
16.10 November 2017New I-Mobile Stadium, Buriram, Thailand Malaysia4–04–12019 AFC Asian Cup qualification
17.16 December 2017Ajinomoto Stadium, Tokyo, Japan China1–11–12017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
18.27 March 2018Kim Il Sung Stadium, Pyongyang, North Korea Hong Kong1–02–02019 AFC Asian Cup qualification
19.11 November 2018Taipei Municipal Stadium, Taipei, Taiwan Mongolia4–04–12019 EAFF E-1 Football Championship qualification
20.16 November 2018 Chinese Taipei1–02–0
21.25 December 2018Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam Vietnam1–11–1Friendly
22.8 July 2019TransStadia Arena, Ahmedabad, India Syria1–02–52019 Intercontinental Cup
23.13 July 2019 India1–05–2
24.2–0
25.5 September 2019Kim Il Sung Stadium, Pyongyang, North Korea Lebanon1–02–02022 FIFA World Cup qualification
26.2–0
27.21 November 2023Thuwunna Stadium, Yangon, Myanmar Myanmar1–06–12026 FIFA World Cup qualification
28.4–0
29.5–0

Style of play

Jong is known for being a pacy and technical forward who can play on either flanks or up top. He has an expert first touch and vision and has an eye for exploiting spaces in between defenders. Jong is also a set piece specialist, scoring multiple free kicks in his international career.

Honours

North Korea U20

North Korea

Individual

  • Hero Intercontinental Cup Best player: 2019

References
  1. Ri, Sung Ik. "Footballers and coaches of year nominated". The Pyongyang Times. Archived from the original on 28 December 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  2. Ri, Sung Ik. "Footballers and coaches of year nominated". The Pyongyang Times. Archived from the original on 28 December 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  3. Jong Il-gwan at National-Football-Teams.com
  4. "The AFC". www.the-afc.com. Archived from the original on 24 April 2019. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  5. "Newcastle eyeing North Korea sensation Jong Il-Gwan - Tribal Football".
  6. Reprezentativac Severne Koreje ponudjen Partizanu Archived 9 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine at sportal.rs, 6-6-2012 (in Serbian)
  7. Wyrsch, Daniel (1 June 2017). "Stürmer aus Nordkorea als FCL-Hoffnungsträger" (in German). Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  8. "Papierstau behoben: Nordkoreaner Il Gwan Jong stürmt für den FCL" (in German). 7 July 2017. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  9. "Jong, Il-Gwan". National Football Teams. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
  10. "DPR KOREA LIFT HERO INTERCONTINENTAL CUP 2019 TITLE". AIFF. 19 July 2019. Archived from the original on 29 July 2019. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
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