On Tuesday, though, Son Heung-min officially began his trip to the United States. He will soon be headed to Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles FC. If true, this will be a league-record breaking move. Importantly, it highlights just how popular and talented South Korean forward Son Heung-min is.
The announcement of Son’s departure from Tottenham Hotspur came over the weekend, as he reflected on a successful tenure with the club. He said that he’d accomplished all that you could accomplish in his time at Tottenham. Now, he’s hungry for a different kind of challenge.
His farewell from Spurs was emotional, with teammates showing up to say their goodbyes. In our postgame huddle, fellow player, Thomas Frank, reflected on the special nature of the occasion.
“First, we had the walk around, and then the teammates gathered around, and he was emotional,” – Thomas Frank
In addition to his teammates at Tottenham, players from Newcastle expressed their respect and admiration for Son during his farewell. Newcastle coach Eddie Howe hailed the union Son formed with other teammates over his career.
“The reaction was instinctive from my players. I think that speaks volumes about him,” – Eddie Howe
Some 65,000 jubilant supporters cheered Son’s farewell at Seoul World Cup Stadium in his native South Korea. They honored him with an emotional sendoff, reflecting just how much he was beloved over the course of his brilliant career. He will always be remembered for an incredible legacy at Tottenham. He scored 172 goals and assisted 94 in just 451 matches in all competitions. Most impressively though, 127 of those goals were scored strictly in Premier League play.
Still only 33 years of age, Son has been just as impactful on the international stage for his home country of South Korea. He played in three different World Cups as well and managed to score an incredible 51 goals in 134 appearances for South Korea. With this accomplishment he is now the second-leading goal-scorer of all time for his country.
As Major League Soccer gets set to welcome Son to their ranks, all eyes will be on what he provides to LAFC. His transfer from Tottenham has the potential to be a watershed moment for the game of soccer here in North America. He immediately joins a growing roster of international stars leaving their imprint on the league.
