Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-min cheers with his teammates after scoring the team’s fifth goal in the away game against Norwich City in the final 38th round of the 2021-22 season at Caro Road in Norwich, England on the 23rd (Korea time). Norwich = Archyde.com
Son Heung-min (30, Tottenham) became the first Asian to become the top scorer in the English Premier League (EPL), writing a new history in Korean football.
Heung-Min Son started in the away game against Norwich City in the final 38th round of the 2021-22 season held at Caro Road, Norwich, England on the 23rd (Korean time) on the 23rd (Korean time) and scored an additional goal with the help of Lucas Mora in the 25th minute of the second half leading 3-0. put in Then, in the 30th minute of the second half, the so-called ‘Heung-Min Son zone’ made 5-0 by shaking the net once more with a right-footed take-up shot from the left side of the penalty area.
Heung-Min Son, who increased his scoring for the season to 23 goals, finished the league with Mohammed Salah (Liverpool) jointly leading the scoring. Salah started the final match between Liverpool and Wolverhampton from the bench, but came on as a substitute in the 13th minute of the second half. Heung-Min Son could not score until the time he scored the 23rd goal, so he seemed to miss the top scorer, but he succeeded in a comeback goal in the 39th minute of the second half and became the top scorer together with Heung-Min Son.
Son Heung-min is the first Asian player to win the top scorer in the EPL. Even if the scope was expanded to the five major leagues such as England, Spain, Germany, Italy and France, there was no Asian scorer. Iran’s Alireza Jahanbaksi (Feyenoord) scored 21 goals in the 2017-18 season in the Eredivisie, Netherlands, and became the top scorer, but the Dutch league is not classified as a big league.
Tottenham Hotspur defeated Norwich 5-0. It was a one-sided game with 10 shots in the first half alone. Tottenham’s players, who started the second half 2-0, actively helped Son Heung-min to become the top scorer by scoring a goal. Dejan Kulusevsky also missed the opportunity while waiting for Son Heung-min in a situation where he could score directly. When Son Heung-min scored a multi-goal and took the lead in scoring, everyone was happy to lift him together.
The British local media praised Son Heung-min’s feat. “He knew there was a huge opportunity to score more against the demoralized Norwich,” said The Guardian. Sky Sports, a sports media outlet, wrote, “It makes no sense. Son Heung-min is a completely different class player.” The Evening Standard gave 10 points, saying, “Heung-Min Son finished an excellent season with the golden boot. He was blocked several times by the opposing goalkeeper, but Heung-Min Son did not give up.”
After the game, Son Heung-min said in an interview with the BBC, “It’s been a dream since I was little. I can’t believe I won the top scorer.” He added, “I had a desire to score before the game. Thanks to my teammates, I got a lot of good opportunities.” He added, “The trophy is very heavy. It will be a memorable day.” Tottenham manager Antonio Conte said, “There were two goals for the team to advance to the European Football Federation Champions League (within 4th place) and Heung-Min Son to be the top scorer. I am happy to have achieved it.” “I’m very happy,” he said.
With this victory, Tottenham recorded 22 wins, 5 draws, and 11 losses (71 points), two points behind Arsenal (22 wins, 3 draws, 13 losses, 69 points) to advance to the Champions League next season. It is the first three seasons since the 2018-19 season.
Dongsoon Choi reporter [email protected]