For Nam, his side’s scarcely believable season was the inevitable outcome of jigsaw pieces falling into place and the midfielder credits the success to Al Duhail’s experienced core group of players, who have been supplemented by youngsters. 

“Only two players have come in from El Jaish – Lucas Mendes and Murad Naji says Nam. 

“Otherwise, it’s more or less the same group. Previously, everybody was young, including myself. Now, we are all aged 26-27 and are in our best form. Over the years, we have gained experience in the AFC Champions League and all the other competitions. 

“We now have a good bench as well with great young players. I feel this has strengthened the team; these players have helped the team a lot.” 

Al Duhail are the youngest club in the AFC Champions League, while their predecessor Lekhwiya only came to existence in 2009. 

The side gained promotion to Qatar’s top division at the first attempt before winning the league title the very next year. When Nam joined Lekhwiya as a 20-year-old in January 2012, the team had already begun to make a name for itself.

Nam’s arrival in Qatar generated significant intrigue, especially as Lekhwiya would be his first club in Asia. The diminutive Korean has never played professionally in his homeland, having gained a footballing education at Reading’s academy in England before racking up three seasons’ worth of experience playing for Valenciennes in France.

While at Valenciennes, Nam became the youngest Asian player to appear in a Ligue 1 game, aged just 18, and he arrived in Doha with a cosmopolitan upbringing, equipped with the kind of experience that a lot of his peers would not have.

For one thing, it helped him settle at Lekhwiya, where the language barrier was not too big of an issue.

“Here, a number of players (and members of the coaching staff) speak French, and I can communicate easily in French or English, as well,” Nam, who has now also picked up some Arabic, explains.

“I am lucky to play here. We have the best players in Qatar. It’s not just me who’s doing well. My teammates are among the best in the land. We help each other and that’s why everything works well.

“Every year, I have won something – the league or a cup. But this season has been the happiest for me. It’s been the best in the history of the club. We didn’t lose a game except the Super Cup at the beginning of the season. We drew just three times and won all the other games.”

The season has been characterised by Al Duhail’s enviable ability to overcome setbacks with a remarkable calmness. Their six wins out of six in the group stage of the AFC Champions League featured come-from-behind wins against Al Wahda of the United Arab Emirates, Iranian side Zobahan and Uzbekistan’s Lokomotiv.

Faced with three-time finalists Al Ain in the last 16, Djamel Belmadi’s men flew into the UAE for the first leg without influential captain Youssef Msakni, who had been ruled out with a long-term knee injury. Right on cue, Nam stepped up to assume the mantle.

After Youssef El Arabi’s early goal put Al Duhail in front, Nam powered his side to go further ahead. First, he scored with a magnificent solo effort that started off in his own half, before coming up with two assists, stunning the home crowd into silence.

Al Ain eventually got back into the game with two late goals, setting the stage for a potentially nail-biting finish in the second leg in Doha. However, any hopes they might have had were dashed again a week later as Nam orchestrated a 4-1 win by setting up two goals.

“You don’t think about the final now. We have to focus on the quarter-final [against Iranian side Persepolis]. We know it’s a difficult task to overcome,” says Nam when asked about Al Duhail’s chances of winning the tournament.

“We have been here twice before (losing to China’s Guangzhou Evergrande and Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal), but now, it’s different. We are in good form and we are ready to go far. Everybody knows it will be tough. We just have to be prepared to win.”

The two games against Al Ain acted as a reminder as to how important Nam is to Belmadi’s side. He hadn’t scored or assisted a goal during the group stage, as Msakni and El Arabi grabbed the lion’s share of attention. In comparison, he scored four and assisted three during the 2017 group stage.

Yet, regardless of the statistics, Nam was always there, pulling the strings from midfield. And if anyone would ignore him, it would be at their own peril, as Al Ain learned in the Round of 16.

Despite earning the plaudits, Nam’s humility was on display as he showered praise on his captain and Player of the Season, Msakni. Both were named on the shortlist for Qatar’s best player award at the end of the season, alongside Al Sadd’s Xavi Hernandez.

“Msakni, without a doubt,” he said when quizzed on who he thought deserved the accolade. “He was the best player in our team and he deserved the award after this brilliant season. I was surprised to find my name on the list, although I was happy to be there.”

In Msakni’s absence, Nam has taken the team’s reins and led by example and he is now aiming for a first appearance in the AFC Champions League semi-finals. His immediate future, meanwhile, remains with his long-term employers.

“At the moment, I’m very happy to play for Al Duhail,” he says. “I just want to focus on the team and the AFC Champions League. We have been trying to win it for a long time but we couldn’t. And now, I think we are ready to go all the way to the final. That’s what I’m focusing on.”

Yet, there is one club he would like to feature in at some point in the future.

“I’d like to play for Ulsan Hyundai. It’s the team I grew up in when I was young, and if I get a chance to go to Korea, I want to play there,” he admits.

Coincidently, Al Duhail are currently chasing Ulsan’s record of nine consecutive wins in the AFC Champions League on their way to winning the 2012 title – a year after Al Sadd became the last side from West Asia to lift the continental title.

On the back of Al Duhail’s run of success so far, many will consider they have a strong chance of matching Ulsan and ending the West Asian drought.

“Of course, the media says we are the best team. But I think we can do better and we want to improve. We want to keep moving forward,” reflects Nam.

In the midst of all the club success, the midfielder was devastated to miss out on a place in the Korea Republic squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. 

“I’m very sad. I was in the 30-member provisional squad before the 2014 FIFA World Cup but I missed out in the end,” admits Nam.

“I’m disappointed but this is the coach’s decision. “This is football. This is life. It just means that another player is better than me and I have to work harder. I don’t know if I can return to the squad but I will never give up and will keep working hard and do my best. I have to push myself more to play at the next FIFA World Cup in Qatar.” 

While he will be cheering on his Korea Republic teammates this summer in Russia, Nam will also be thinking about Al Duhail’s upcoming AFC Champions League quarterfinal against Persepolis, which is set to be one of the most important games of his career.