Lee Chun-soo was never to be confused with a Mensa member, but his quirkiness seems to be reaching new heights ― or rather, new lows.
After taking several years to crawl his way back into European football, Lee left Feyenoord Rotterdam and made a surprise return to Seoul Wednesday with the team explaining it as a two-week break to cure his ``homesickness.''
However, sources close to the South Korean international say he is pushing for a comeback into the domestic league and personally contacted K-League clubs to see if they are interested.
``I know one team in the metropolitan area that was personally contacted by Lee recently,'' said a K-League official, who refused to be named.
This means that the 26-year-old striker would prefer playing for FC Seoul, the Suwon BlueWings or Seongnam Chunma ― three of the league's richest and more popular clubs ― but not for his former team Ulsan Horang-I (Tigers).
An official at IFA, the sports agency that represents Lee, denied speculations that his client is looking for a domestic comeback after playing just four games for Feyenoord.
However, he did admit that Lee was experiencing trouble adapting to life and football in Rotterdam.
``This is not the first time that Lee expressed his desires to rest at home, telling us about his difficulties in adapting to his new team,'' he said, adding that Lee would be returning to Feyenoord on Dec. 11 or 12. ``We persuaded him not to do that the first time.''
Exit Drama
Lee would save everybody a lot of time by taking a few minutes to directly address his situation to the media. However, the diminutive striker proved to be as elusive from reporters as he is from responsibility.
In an airport stunt that deserves its own Nike commercial, Lee staged his father, Jun-man, who faked taking a phone call from his son and darted toward the parking lot of the Incheon International Airport.
With the camped reporters making a sudden pursuit of the elder Lee, Chun-soo was able to sneak past the arrival gate and head home without hosting a single question.
It's difficult to imagine a top-tier club, such as Feyenoord, would allow a reasonably healthy player to take a midseason hiatus because he is homesick, especially when he joined the team two months ago.
Under the current circumstances, it's easier to believe that Lee is buying time to weigh his options and plot his way out of Feyenoord.
Good luck with that. The Dutch club paid the Tigers euro 2 million ($2.9 million) in transfer fees to acquire the rights of Lee, and it's hard to argue that any K-League club would spend that kind of money on a player with mental issues.
Even if Lee decides to return to Feyenoord, his recent meltdown would have likely done irrevocable damage to his status in the locker room.
Feyenoord is currently struggling with a compromised lineup with key players, such as Luigi Bruins, Tim Vincken and Nicky Hofs, hobbled with injuries. Lee picked the worst time to bailout on his teammates.
In an interview posted on British Web site Sporting Life, Feyenoord technical manager Peter Bosz said ``there was no other option'' but to let Lee return to Seoul, although he expected the winger to return strong.
``As a club, we gave him a lot of guidance, by pointing him the way to the Korean community in Holland, but also by teaching him stuff about our culture,'' Bosz said. ``Everything looked to be going perfect, until after the match against Ajax.
``Everything totally changed then. That surprised us a lot.''
History Repeats?
It's not like Lee could afford to act like a diva. Lee, a member of South Korea's glorified 2002 World Cup squad, never has proven he belongs in European football.
During his two season in Spanish football through 2003 and 2005, Lee appeared in a combined 28 matches for Real Sociedad and Numancia, but failed to score a single goal, an embarrassing ending for someone who endorsed himself as ``better than Beckham.''
Lee, considered one of the country's best players and a key part of the national team, where he is mostly used at right midfield, is regarded for his pace and trickery, while his set-piece prowess is also an asset.
However, the winger doesn't play bigger than his frail, 1.74-meter frame, and his lack of vision and tendency to walk the ball had critics questioning whether his skills could translate into European success.
After self-imploding, Lee now finds himself in a mess that even his dad can't rescue him from.
Anyway, het waren twee fantastische maanden 
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