“Many things happened from the Asian Cup, but they were always short by 2 percent or 3 percent. Next year, I will become more united with the players and make it a special year.”
Team Korea’s “captain” Son Heung-min (32) of Tottenham Hotspur FC looked back on a particularly long year after finishing the sixth Group B match (1-1 draw) of the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup against Palestine, the last A match of this year. 2024 was the most “eventful” time for him since he won the A-team national flag. Still, the beginning was a nightmare, but the end was meaningful.
There is no end to learning. The same goes for soccer in which groups compete for a “round ball.” Superstar Son Heung-min, who left numerous traces in the big league, also went through the third growth in the national team this year. The Asian Cup, which was held in Qatar from January to February, was the most heartbreaking time of his career. Under Jurgen Klinsmann’s system, South Korea unexpectedly lost 0-2 in the semifinal against Jordan, re-folding the dream of Asian throne for the first time in 63 years. For Son Heung-min, it was not just the pain of being eliminated. He was hurt when his conflict with Lee Kang-in ahead of the match against Jordan became known to the world. Although junior Lee Kang-in’s sincere apology followed, he, who served as the leader for a long time, even said he was contemplating early retirement from the national team.
Having lived in Europe since his teenage years, Son has been living in a hierarchical order between seniors and juniors. Son may feel heterogeneous, but he followed suit with respect to the culture unique to the national team. After wearing the captain’s armband, he became more and more responsible. However, European teams, which have various life trajectories, already account for more than half of the national team’s members. Diverse cultures inevitably collide. Son, for his part, has continued his position as captain due to an inflection point within his own culture.
Despite the pain, his leadership has become more mature. He tried to approach his juniors first, and show off his value more on the field. He has helped plant the spirit of the original team, which is the topic of creativity and sacrifice based on autonomy.
The same is true after Coach Hong Myung-bo took the helm of the A team last summer. Son Heung-min is playing for the finals in North Korea and Central America two years later, joining not only his flagship juniors such as Lee Kang-in and Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) but also the “New Generation” generation such as Bae Joon-ho (Stoke City) and Oh Hyun-kyu (Henk). Notably, he missed the third and fourth preliminary games (against Jordan and Iraq) last month due to a thigh injury, but returned to the second consecutive games in November, serving as a troubleshooter by scoring the final goal against Kuwait (3-1 win) and tying the match against Palestine.
His goal in the match against Palestine was extraordinary. He scored his 51st A-match goal on the day, and has risen to the second place alone, beating over Hwang Sun-hong (50 goals), the Daejeon coach. Cha Bum-kun, former coach of Suwon, ranked first with 58 goals. He also had 10 goals in A-match games this year alone, exceeding nine in 2015, marking the most in a year and the first double-digit score record. 온라인카지노
“Several records including 51 A-match goals are not important. I think more about plays and actions that will help the team,” Son said. “If I fill up what I lack, I will be able to retire after making sure that I am 100 percent satisfied when I have to leave the national team someday.” “It was a great honor to play in many matches this year and play in the national team,” Son said, hoping for a brighter year in 2025.