Midfielder Hwang In-beom has joined Serbian club FK Crvena Zvezda, leaving Olympiacos F.C. in the Greek league.
Zvezda announced on Tuesday that it signed a four-year contract with Hwang. The exact terms of the deal were not revealed, but Serbian media said the transfer fee would be a club record 5 million euros.
Hwang made his professional debut in 2015 with Daejeon Hana Citizen in the K-League. He joined the Vancouver Whitecaps in the North American league in 2019, moving to FC Rubin Kazan in Russia the following year, before transferring to Olympiacos in July of last year.
He scored five goals and four assists in 40 appearances for the Greek club during the 2022-23 season and was selected as the club's player of the year.
However, he became embroiled in a dispute with it over the terms of his contract. Hwang believed he could leave the club at any time after the first year since the contract was a 1+2-year deal, while the club insisted it was a three-year contract. As the conflict escalated, Hwang was excluded from the roster and denied playing time. Meanwhile, Zvezda showed interest in him and the two clubs agreed on the transfer.
Founded in 1945, Zvezda hold the record for the most Serbian SuperLiga titles with nine, six of which came in a row starting with the 2017-18 season, earning the club a regular ticket to the UEFA Europa League. They have advanced to the UEFA Champions League this season, grouped with Manchester City in the English Premier League, Leipzig in the Bundesliga and BSC Young Boys in the Swiss Super League. The Champions League starts on Sept. 19.
