Korean midfielder Ji So-yun of Chelsea will leave the English club at the end of the season and return home.
Chelsea announced Ji's impending departure last Friday, saying, "Following an incredible eight years with the club, [Ji] will leave Chelsea at the end of the season to head back to [Korea]."
Ji appeared in a video posted on the club's website announcing the decision. In the video, she teared up as she said, "It's been difficult, but I have had to make a hard decision to leave Chelsea after eight years." She also thanked her manager Emma Hayes and the fans.
Ji began her professional career with Japan's INAC Kobe Leonessa in 2011 and moved to Chelsea in 2014, becoming the first Korean woman footballer to play in England.
In 208 appearances for Chelsea she scored 68 goals including 37 league goals. She won Player of the Year awards from both the Football Association Women's Super League and the Professional Footballers Association in her debut campaign and was named in the PFA Team of the Year five times. She was also the first non-British player to reach 100 and 200 league appearances, respectively. In the 2021-22 season she has scored two goals and posted six assists in 20 games.
As a member of the Korean national team, Ji has scored 64 goals in 137 international matches.
Ji only has two league matches left to play this season, as well as the Vitality Women's FA Cup final against Manchester City on May 15. She has reportedly received an annual salary of W100 million at Chelsea (US$1=W1,262).
After declining to extend her contract with the team she has reportedly already signed with a Korean club, but no details have been disclosed yet.
