| Nam Tae-hee | |
| Birth Date: | 3 July 1991[1] |
| Birth Place: | Jinju, Gyeongnam, South Korea |
| Height: | 1.74 m |
| Position: | Attacking midfielder, winger |
| Currentclub: | Yokohama F. Marinos |
| Clubnumber: | 29 |
| Youthyears1: | 2004–2006 |
| Youthclubs1: | (Youth) |
| Youthyears2: | 2007 |
| Youthclubs2: | (Youth) |
| Youthyears3: | 2007–2008 |
| Youthclubs3: | Reading |
| Years1: | 2009–2011 |
| Clubs1: | Valenciennes |
| Caps1: | 37 |
| Goals1: | 0 |
| Years2: | 2012–2019 |
| Clubs2: | Al-Duhail |
| Caps2: | 160 |
| Goals2: | 73 |
| Years3: | 2019–2021 |
| Clubs3: | Al-Sadd |
| Caps3: | 37 |
| Goals3: | 10 |
| Years4: | 2021–2023 |
| Clubs4: | Al-Duhail |
| Caps4: | 34 |
| Goals4: | 11 |
| Years5: | 2023– |
| Clubs5: | Yokohama F. Marinos |
| Caps5: | 11 |
| Goals5: | 0 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2006 |
| Nationalteam1: | South Korea U17 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 4 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2012 |
| Nationalteam2: | South Korea U23 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 9 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 2 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2011– |
| Nationalteam3: | South Korea |
| Nationalcaps3: | 54 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 7 |
| Club-Update: | 27 March 2024 |
| Nationalteam-Update: | 27 March 2024 |
| Hangul: | 남태희 |
| Rr: | Nam Taehui |
| Mr: | Nam T'aehŭi |
Nam Tae-hee (; pronounced as /ko/; born 3 July 1991 in Busan) is a South Korean professional footballer who plays for J1 League club Yokohama F. Marinos[2] and the South Korea national team. He has also played in England, France, and Qatar.[3] He is a versatile midfielder and can play as attacking midfielder or central midfielder. He is known for his honed technique, smooth movement, and dribbling.
Nam played in the Reading's Youth Academy through,[4] but was unable to sign for the club due to work permit issues.[5] In July 2009, his first professional contract signed in France with Valenciennes FC.[6] He played his debut on 8 August 2009 against AS Nancy and is currently the youngest Asian player to play in the Ligue 1 at age 18.[7]
In the winter break of the 2011–12 season, Nam agreed to leave Ligue 1 for Qatar Stars League club Lekhwiya SC on 26 December 2011.[8]
Nam made his debut on 1 January 2012 against Al Kharitiyath.[9] He scored his first league goal from a free kick on 19 January 2012.[10]
He made his AFC Champions League debut for Lekhwiya (now Al-Duhail) on 7 March 2012, scoring the only goal against Saudi Al Ahli,[11] thereby scoring the first ever goal for Lekhwiya in any regional competition.
In November 2018 while on international duty, Nam tore his ACL.[12]
On 8 February 2019, Al Sadd SC announced that they acquired Nam from fellow Qatari club Al-Duhail SC.[13] Under their agreement, Nam will join Al Sadd in the 2019–20 season and will play for them for three years.[14]
On 8 July 2021, Nam returned to Al-Duhail after two years.
On 30 July 2023, Al-Duhail confirmed that Nam would leave the club.[15]
On 1 August 2023, Nam signed with J1 League club Yokohama F. Marinos.[16]
Nam has represented South Korea at U-13, U-15 and U-17, U-20 and U-23 levels.[7] He made his debut for the Korean senior team on 9 February 2011 in a friendly against Turkey.
Nam represented South Korea at the 2012 Summer Olympics. He appeared as a substitute as Korea beat Japan in the bronze medal match at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.[17]
On 22 December 2014, Nam was named in South Korea's squad for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup held in Australia.[18] In the team's second group match, Nam scored the only goal as Korea defeated Kuwait 1–0 to ensure qualification to the knockout stage.[19] On 20 November 2018, it was announced that Nam would miss the 2019 AFC Asian Cup in the UAE after being ruled out for six months because of a knee injury.[20]
Updated 27 March 2024.[21]
| Club performance | League | Cup | Other | Continental | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Club | Season | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |
| France | League | Coupe de France | Coupe de la Ligue | Europe | Total | ||||||||
| Valenciennes b | 2009-10 | Championnat National 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||||
| 2010–11 | 5 | 6 | — | — | — | 5 | 6 | ||||||
| 2011–12 | Championnat National 2 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Total | 8 | 7! | — | — | — | 8 | 7 | ||||||
| Valenciennes | 2009–10 | Ligue 1 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 7 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 21 | 0 | ||||
| 2011–12 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 13 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 37 | 0! | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0! | — | 41 | 0 | ||||
| Qatar | League | Emir of Qatar Cup | Other [22] | Asia | Total | ||||||||
| Lekhwiya Al-Duhail | 2011–12 | QSL | 10 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 19 | 7 | |
| 2012–13 | 19 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 34 | 8 | |||
| 2013–14 | 24 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 38 | 15 | |||
| 2014–15 | 25 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 38 | 10 | |||
| 2015–16 | 25 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 40 | 16 | |||
| 2016–17 | 25 | 14 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 37 | 20 | |||
| 2017–18 | 21 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 35 | 17 | |||
| 2018–19 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 14 | 7 | |||
| Total | 160 | 73! | 14 | 4! | 25 | 10! | 61 | 13! | 260 | 100 | |||
| Al-Sadd | 2019–20 | QSL | 19 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 37 | 6 | |
| 2020-21 | 18 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 31 | 12 | |||
| Total | 37 | 10! | 6 | 2! | 13 | 4! | 12 | 2! | 68 | 18 | |||
| Al-Duhail | 2021-22 | QSL | 16 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 26 | 7 | |
| 2022-23 | 18 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 31 | 9 | |||
| Total | 34 | 11! | 5 | 3! | 9 | 2! | 9 | 0! | 57 | 16 | |||
| Yokohama F. Marinos | 2023 | J1 League | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 1 | |
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 10 | 0 | |||
| Total | 11 | 0! | 0 | 0! | 3 | 1! | 8 | 0! | 22 | 1 | |||
| Career Total | 287 | 101 | 27 | 9 | 52 | 17 | 90 | 15 | 456 | 146 | |||
Scores and results list South Korea's goal tally first.[23]
| Goal | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 10 October 2014 | align=center | 2–0 | align=center | 2–0 | Friendly | |||
| 2. | 13 January 2015 | align=center | 1–0 | align=center | 1–0 | 2015 AFC Asian Cup | |||
| 3. | 12 November 2015 | Suwon World Cup Stadium, Suwon, South Korea | align=center | 4–0 | align=center | 4–0 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification | ||
| 4. | 15 November 2016 | Seoul World Cup Stadium, Seoul, South Korea | align=center | 1–1 | align=center | 2–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification | ||
| 5. | 7 September 2018 | Goyang Stadium, Goyang, South Korea | align=center | 2–0 | align=center | 2–0 | Friendly | ||
| 6. | 20 November 2018 | QSAC, Brisbane, Australia | align=center | 1–0 | align=center | 4–0 | Friendly | ||
| 7. | 5 June 2021 | Goyang Stadium, Goyang, South Korea | align=center | 2–0 | align=center | 5–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Lekhwiya/Al-Duhail
2011–12, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2022-23 Qatar Stars League
Al-Sadd
South Korea U23
South Korea
Individual
2017[24]
Nam is hailed as the 'Korean Messi' by Valenciennes fans and has also been touted as a 'magician' and 'wonderkid'.[7] He was Most Valuable Player three times in his youth career in the National Championships in South Korea.[7] Nam became the youngest Korean footballer to play in a professional league in Europe as a result of this game.[7] He is known for his very energetic playing style.