Ji-sung Park was something of a lucky charm for the Reds during the 2007/08 double-winning campaign. In the 14 games he started in all competitions, United were unbeaten and conceded only two goals.

After missing the first half of the season whilst he recovered from the cartilage problems which cut short his first title-winning campaign in 2006/07, Park returned to action in the Boxing Day win at Sunderland. He netted his first, and only, goal of the season at Craven Cottage in March 2008, powerfully heading home United's second goal in a 3-0 victory. But it was his battling display in the Champions League semi-final,

second leg against Barcelona which really caught the eye. He ran nearly 12km on the night and never stopped grafting for 90 minutes. It was a typical energy-filled performance from the South Korean who has become something of a cult hero since his arrival from PSV in the summer of 2005.

Born in Seoul, raised in Suwon just outside South Korea’s capital, Park left school at 18 to join Japanese side Kyoto Purple Sanga. His potential to make the leap from Asia to Europe was spotted by Guus Hiddink, who coached the South Korea during their successful run to the World Cup semi finals in 2002. Later that year, Park followed

Hiddink to PSV.

Ji earned widespread recognition in 2005 after scoring against Milan in the Champions League semi finals, but he had gradually been building his reputation in Holland. Park played only a fleeting part in PSV’s title success in his first season in Holland. Two years later he had fully adapted to European football and was an integral component of the side that clinched Holland's League and Cup Double.

Alerted to his blossoming talent, Sir Alex had Park watched more than 20 times before finally signing him for an undisclosed fee, believed to be £4million, in June 2005. Having

already proved his ability in Europe, acclimatising to the Premiership was Park’s initial test. He rose to the challenge, playing all but four of United’s Premiership matches in 2005/06. He scored his first goal for the club with a fine strike in the 3-1 away win over Birmingham in December 2005, and claimed his first medal in the Carling Cup final win in February.

He added two Premier League winners' medals in 2007 and 2008 and, although he was left out of Sir Alex's 18-man squad for the Champions League final, he played his part in helping the Reds secure European glory with fine displays against Roma and Barcelona.