Park's industry, energy and work ethic made
him a favourite of Alex Ferguson during his
time at Manchester United and his
performances in England and with Dutch side
PSV Eindhoven helped raise the profile of
Korean football around the world.
The 33-year-old, who called time on his
international career after the 2011 Asian Cup,
said he could not continue to play at the
highest level because of knee issues but added
that he was leaving the game without any
regrets.
"I didn't cry about it yesterday, and I'm not
crying about it today, that means I'm leaving
with no regrets," he said at the Park Ji-sung
Football Centre in Suwon, where he has a
street named after him.
"I enjoyed playing football. I have achieved
more than I have thought I would. I'm truly
grateful for all the support I have received and
I will live the rest of my life thinking how I can
pay it back."
After leaving Manchester United in 2012, Park
signed for Queen's Park Rangers but spent the
last season on loan at PSV. Issues with his knee
sidelined him for long spells over the last two
years.
"I thought about getting an operation but even
if I did it wouldn't mean the injury would be
gone completely. Naturally, retirement was the
option," he added.
Park grabbed the spotlight at the 2002 World
Cup finals, which were co-hosted by South
Korea and Japan.
Under the tutelage of Dutch coach Guus
Hiddink, the shaggy-haired midfielder
flourished on the game's biggest stage, scoring
the winning goal against Portugal to seal
Korea's place in the knockout stages for the
first time.
After the World Cup, Hiddink was appointed
manager of PSV and brought Park with him,
where, after a tough start, he won over the
fans and caught the eye of then Manchester
United manager Ferguson.
Park, described by Ferguson as the "ultimate
professional", spent seven seasons at United,
winning four Premier League titles and the
Champions League in 2008, though he was
surprisingly omitted from the squad for the
final.
In 2009, he became the first Asian to play in
the Champions League final when he started in
United's 2-0 loss to Barcelona.
"The proudest moment for me was of course
the 2002 World Cup," said Park, flanked by his
father and his mother, who was in tears
throughout the news conference.
"The most influential figure in my life is Guus
Hiddink. He took me abroad after the World
Cup and that was the turning point of my life.
"Ferguson also helped me play at the world's
top level… the coaches I've spent time with
are definitely my great asset."
Park gave himself a "seven out of 10" for his
career and said he would pull on the PSV
uniform for the last time on May 28 when the
Dutch side visit Korea to play in a charity
match as a tribute to the victims of the recent
ferry disaster.
Park said if he had to choose only one team to
play for it would be the national side.
"I would choose to wear the national team
uniform because it was my lifetime dream to
wear it."
