Son Heung-min (Tottenham), who became the longest-serving captain of the Korean national soccer team, aims for a goal against Colombia, the first A-match opponent of this year.
The Korean national team, led by coach Jurgen Klinsmann, will play a friendly match against Colombia at Ulsan Munsu Soccer Stadium at 8:00 pm on the 24th.
It is the first match played by the national team since last year’s 2022 Qatar World Cup round of 16, and it is also the debut match for coach Klinsman, the successor to coach Paulo Bento, as the Korean command tower.
While the World Cup members played a key role in the 1st season of Klinsmann, the eyes of Son Heung-min, who played for Colombia, are focused on his toes.
Son Heung-min, who became the first Asian player in the 2021-2022 season to become the top scorer (23 goals) in the English Premier League (EPL), suffered an orbital fracture during his team’s game just before the World Cup in Qatar, which opened in November last year, and wore a mask to compete.
Although he failed to score goals in three consecutive World Cup finals, he showed his mask fighting spirit and led Korea’s attack.
In particular, in the 3rd group H match against Portugal, after running alone just before the end of the second half, he helped Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton) score the winning goal 2-1 with a sensational pass, leading Korea to advance to the round of 16 for the first time in 12 years.
However, due to the tight schedule and injuries caused by the World Cup, the number of goals for his team decreased significantly this season. He has 6 goals (4 assists) in the EPL, and 10 goals (4 goals) including cup competitions such as the European Football Federation (UEFA) and Champions League (UCL).
Fortunately, right before joining the national team, he improved his condition with two consecutive offensive points (one goal, one assist). He left only one goal in his 100th EPL career goal.
Manager Klinsman also has high expectations for Son Heung-min, a Tottenham junior.
At the inaugural press conference, Son Heung-min, who claimed to be a ‘big fan’ of Son Heung-min, was looking forward to joining the national team.
At the official press conference the day before the game, he often mentioned Son Heung-min, who was also present, and looked at him happily.
Son Heung-min, who took the captain’s armband in Klinsman following Bento, pledged to “lead by example” and was confident that he would take the first step toward the 2026 World Cup in North and Central America.
Son Heung-min, who has been captain of the national team since September 2018, has maintained the captaincy for 4 years and 7 months, becoming the longest serving captain in history.
Heung-Min Son said, “Fans are interested only when the players like them and show a fun and enjoyable image. The most important thing is to play with a smile. Then goals will come naturally, and the team can win.”
Coincidentally, Son Heung-min recently played an active part in the national team as the ‘Colombia Killer’.
In November 2017, in the evaluation match against Colombia in Suwon, he led a 2-1 victory with multiple goals, and in the face-to-face match in Seoul in 2019, he set the stage for a 2-1 victory with the opening goal in the 16th minute of the first half.
If you split the Colombian goal net in this game, you will succeed in scoring three consecutive goals. 바카라사이트
Son Heung-min is ranked 4th for the most individual goals scored in Korea with 35 goals in A matches. If he adds just one more goal, he is on par with Park I-cheon (36 goals) in third place.