Nam Tae-hee

For the taekwondo master, see Nam Tae-Hi.

In this Korean name, the family name is Nam.

Nam Tae-hee (Korean: 남태희; Hanja: 南泰熙; Korean pronunciation: [nam.tʰɛ̝.ɦi]; born 3 July 1991 in Busan) is a South Korean professional footballer who plays for J1 League club Yokohama F. Marinos^[2] and the South Korea national team. He has also played in England, France, and Qatar.^[3] He is a versatile midfielder and can play as attacking midfielder or central midfielder. He is known for his honed technique, smooth movement, and dribbling.

Nam Tae-hee

Nam in 2024
Personal information
Date of birth	(1991-07-03) 3 July 1991 (age 33)[1]
Place of birth	Jinju, Gyeongnam, South Korea
Height	1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)	Attacking midfielder, winger
Team information
Current team	Yokohama F. Marinos
Number	29
Youth career
2004–2006	Hyundai Middle School [ko] (Youth)
2007	Hyundai High School [ko] (Youth)
2007–2008	Reading
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2009–2011	Valenciennes	37	(0)
2012–2019	Al-Duhail	160	(73)
2019–2021	Al-Sadd	37	(10)
2021–2023	Al-Duhail	34	(11)
2023–	Yokohama F. Marinos	11	(0)
International career‡
2006	South Korea U17	4	(0)
2012	South Korea U23	9	(2)
2011–	South Korea	54	(7)
Medal record Representing  South Korea Men's football AFC Asian Cup 2015 Australia Team Olympic Games 2012 London Team
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 27 March 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 27 March 2024

Nam Tae-hee
Hangul	남태희
Hanja	南泰煕
Revised Romanization	Nam Taehui
McCune–Reischauer	Nam T'aehŭi

Club career

Nam played in the Reading's Youth Academy through KFA Youth Project [ko].^[4] In July 2009, his first professional contract signed in France with Valenciennes FC.^[5] He played his debut on 8 August 2009 against AS Nancy and is currently the youngest Asian player to play in the Ligue 1 at age 18.^[6]

In the winter break of the 2011–12 season, Nam agreed to leave Ligue 1 for Qatar Stars League giant Lekhwiya SC on 26 December 2011.^[7]

Lekhwiya

Nam made his debut on 1 January 2012 against Al Kharitiyath.^[8] He scored his first league goal from a free kick on 19 January 2012.^[9]

He made his AFC Champions League debut for Lekhwiya (now Al-Duhail) on 7 March 2012, scoring the only goal against Saudi Al Ahli,^[10] thereby scoring the first ever goal for Lekhwiya in any regional competition.

Al Sadd

On 8 February 2019, Al Sadd SC announced that they acquired Nam from fellow Qatari club Al-Duhail SC. Under their agreement, Nam will join Al Sadd in the 2019–20 season and will play for them for three years.^[11]

Return to Al-Duhail

On 8 July 2021, Nam returned to Al-Duhail after two years.

On 30 July 2023, Al-Duhail confirmed that Nam would leave the club.^[12]

Yokohama F. Marinos

On 1 August 2023, Nam signed with J1 League club Yokohama F. Marinos.^[13]

International career

Nam has represented South Korea at U-13, U-15 and U-17, U-20 and U-23 levels.^[6] He made his debut for the Korean senior team on 9 February 2011 in a friendly against Turkey.

Nam represented South Korea at the 2012 Summer Olympics. He appeared as a substitute as Korea beat Japan in the bronze medal match at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.^[14]

On 22 December 2014, Nam was named in South Korea's squad for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup held in Australia.^[15] In the team's second group match, Nam scored the only goal as Korea defeated Kuwait 1–0 to ensure qualification to the knockout stage.^[16] On 20 November 2018, it was announced that Nam would miss the 2019 AFC Asian Cup in the UAE after being ruled out for six months because of a knee injury.^[17]

Career statistics

Club

Updated 27 March 2024.^[18]

Club performance			League		Cup		Other		Continental		Total
Club	Season	League	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
France			League		Coupe de France		Coupe de la Ligue		Europe		Total
Valenciennes b	2009-10	Championnat National 3	2	0	—		—		—		2	0
	2010–11		5	6	—		—		—		5	6
	2011–12	Championnat National 2	1	1	—		—		—		1	1
	Total		8	7	—		—		—		8	7
Valenciennes	2009–10	Ligue 1	6	0	1	0	0	0	—		7	0
	2010–11		18	0	1	0	2	0	—		21	0
	2011–12		13	0	0	0	0	0	—		13	0
	Total		37	0	2	0	2	0	—		41	0
Qatar			League		Emir of Qatar Cup		Other [lower-alpha 1]		Asia		Total
Lekhwiya Al-Duhail	2011–12	QSL	10	5	1	0	2	1	6	1	19	7
	2012–13		19	6	2	0	4	2	9	0	34	8
	2013–14		24	12	1	0	6	1	7	2	38	15
	2014–15		25	7	2	0	3	0	10	3	38	10
	2015–16		25	10	3	2	3	2	7	2	40	16
	2016–17		25	14	2	2	2	0	8	4	37	20
	2017–18		21	12	3	0	4	4	9	1	35	17
	2018–19		11	7	0	0	1	0	5	0	14	7
	Total		160	73	14	4	25	10	61	13	260	100
Al-Sadd	2019–20	QSL	19	3	4	0	8	2	6	1	37	6
	2020-21		18	7	2	2	5	2	6	1	31	12
	Total		37	10	6	2	13	4	12	2	68	18
Al-Duhail	2021-22	QSL	16	5	4	2	0	0	6	0	26	7
	2022-23		18	6	1	1	9	2	3	0	31	9
	Total		34	11	5	3	9	2	9	0	57	16
Yokohama F. Marinos	2023	J1 League	9	0	0	0	3	1	0	0	12	1
	2024		2	0	0	0	0	0	8	0	10	0
	Total		11	0	0	0	3	1	8	0	22	1
Career Total			287	101	27	9	52	17	90	15	456	146

1. Includes Qatari Super Cup, Qatari Stars Cup, Qatar Cup and FIFA Club World Cup

International goals

Scores and results list South Korea's goal tally first.^[19]

Goal	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	10 October 2014	Cheonan Stadium, Cheonan, South Korea	Paraguay	2–0	2–0	Friendly
2.	13 January 2015	Canberra Stadium, Canberra, Australia	Kuwait	1–0	1–0	2015 AFC Asian Cup
3.	12 November 2015	Suwon World Cup Stadium, Suwon, South Korea	Myanmar	4–0	4–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
4.	15 November 2016	Seoul World Cup Stadium, Seoul, South Korea	Uzbekistan	1–1	2–1	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
5.	7 September 2018	Goyang Stadium, Goyang, South Korea	Costa Rica	2–0	2–0	Friendly
6.	20 November 2018	QSAC, Brisbane, Australia	Uzbekistan	1–0	4–0	Friendly
7.	5 June 2021	Goyang Stadium, Goyang, South Korea	Turkmenistan	2–0	5–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

Lekhwiya/Al-Duhail

• Qatar Stars League: 2011–12, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2022-23 Qatar Stars League
• Emir of Qatar Cup: 2016, 2018, 2022
• Sheikh Jassim Cup: 2015, 2016
• Qatar Cup: 2013, 2015, 2018

Al-Sadd

• Qatar Stars League: 2020–21
• Emir of Qatar Cup: 2020, 2021
• Sheikh Jassim Cup: 2019
• Qatar Cup: 2020, 2021

South Korea U23

• Summer Olympics bronze medal: 2012

South Korea

• AFC Asian Cup runner-up: 2015

Individual

• Qatari Footballer of the Year: 2017^[20]
• AFC Champions League All-Star Squad: 2018, 2019^[21][22]

Background

Nam is hailed as the 'Korean Messi' by Valenciennes fans and has also been touted as a 'magician' and 'wonderkid'.^[6] He was Most Valuable Player three times in his youth career in the National Championships in South Korea.^[6] Nam became the youngest Korean footballer to play in a professional league in Europe as a result of this game.^[6] He is known for his very energetic playing style.

References

1. "FIFA Club World Cup Qatar 2019: List of Players: Al-Sadd SC" (PDF). FIFA. 5 December 2019. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 December 2019.
2. "ナム テヒ選手 完全移籍加入のお知らせ". www.f-marinos.com (in Japanese). Yokohama F. Marinos. Archived from the original on 11 August 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
3. Nam Tae-Hee: I came to Qatar to gain more experience and improve^{[permanent dead link]} qsl.qa
4. "Nam Taehee – Reading FC". Archived from the original on 7 February 2009. Retrieved 9 October 2009.
5. "KFA 유학생 출신 남태희' 발랑시엔 공식 입단KFA.com". Archived from the original on 21 January 2019. Retrieved 20 January 2019.
6. "Nam Tae-hee debütiert als jüngster koreanischer Fußballer bei einem europäischen Erstligisten" (in German). VfL Wolfsburg. 10 August 2009. Archived from the original on 7 March 2012. Retrieved 28 May 2009.
7. "Lekhwiya replace Akram with Korea's Nam Tae-Hee". Qatar Stars League. official website. 26 December 2011. Archived from the original on 3 June 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
8. "AL KHARITIYATH VS. LEKHWIYA 1 - 1". Soccerway.com. 1 January 2012. Archived from the original on 23 December 2019. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
9. "LEKHWIYA VS. AL AHLI 1 - 0". Soccerway.com. 16 January 2012. Archived from the original on 4 November 2018. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
10. "Nam stunner propels Lekhwiya". dohastadiumplusqatar.com. 7 March 2012. Archived from the original on 27 December 2012. Retrieved 3 September 2012.
11. "S. Korean footballer Nam Tae-hee joins new Qatari club". Yonhap News Agency. 8 February 2019. Archived from the original on 10 July 2019. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
12. "The Korean Magician Leaves…". Al-Duhail SC. 30 July 2023. Archived from the original on 1 August 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
13. "ナム テヒ選手 完全移籍加入のお知らせ" (in Japanese). Yokohama F. Marinos. 1 August 2023. Archived from the original on 11 August 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
14. "South Korea 2-0 Japan". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
15. "Few surprises as S. Korea announces roster for Asian Cup football tourney". Yonhap News Agency. 22 December 2014. Archived from the original on 23 January 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
16. "South Korea survive scare from Kuwait with 1-0 win in Canberra". The Sydney Morning Herald. 13 January 2015. Archived from the original on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
17. "S. Korea's key attacking midfielder to miss Asian Cup due to torn ACL". Yonhap News Agency. 22 November 2018. Archived from the original on 2 January 2019. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
18. "Nam Tae-Hee - Profile". Archived from the original on 2 January 2019. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
19. "Nam, Tae-Hee". National Football Teams. Archived from the original on 14 February 2022. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
20. "Nam Tae Hee scoops QFA player of the year award". Qatar Stars League. 20 May 2017. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
21. "AFC Champions League 2018 Technical Report". AFC. Archived from the original on 21 April 2019. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
22. "AFC Champions League 2019 Technical Report & Statistics". AFC. Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.

External links

• Nam Tae-hee – French league stats at LFP – also available in French (archived)
• Nam Tae-hee – National Team Stats at KFA (in Korean)