Veteran Striker Says Brisk Performance Fueled by Love for His Son

Along with his wife and son, Jung Jo-gook (right) of Gwangju FC attends the K-League's annual awards ceremony in Seoul on Tuesday. /Yonhap

Jung Jo-gook who plays for Gwangju FC has been named most valued player for this year in the K-League for the first time since his debut 13 years ago.

His brisk performance this season stemmed from his son, Jung said in an interview after an awards ceremony held in Seoul on Tuesday. His son and wife, actressKim Seong-eun, attended the ceremony.

"One day, my son, a preschooler, asked me, 'why are you not playing matches?' I was shocked but it motivated me to do my best to make my son be proud of me as a football player", he said.

In his early career, he was one of the most promising strikers, representing the country as a national team member. But he began to struggle due to frequent injuries. In 2011, he took on a new challenge to play in the French league. But he was not successful and he had to return to Korea about a year and a half later.

But it wasn't easy at home either as he didn't get much time on the field with FC Seoul. So Jung took on another challenge early this year and decided to transfer to Gwangju FC.

His annual salary, once more than W1 billion, was cut to around W300 million due to the financial woes of Gwangju FC, but he did not care. He was only determined to make his son proud.

His efforts finally paid off, and he scored 20 goals this season. Jung's MVP trophy is particularly noteworthy as Gwangju FC ranked far from the top, finishing the season in eighth place among a dozen clubs.

"I'll do my best to become a proud father to my son", Jung said.