A Brief History of Heung-min Son

Heung-min Son, born on July 8, 1992, in Chuncheon, South Korea, has risen to become one of the most beloved and influential football players in the world. His journey began in Europe with the Hamburger SV club in 2008, where his potential was evident even in the junior team, leading to his promotion to the first team in 2010.

In 2013, Son moved to Bayer Leverkusen, where he continued to polish his talent. He earned the reputation of a wily and quick player who was equally adept at dribbling and scoring goals. Son’s ability in and around the box saw him become one of the most sought-after talents in the Bundesliga, and it wasn’t long before big-time came calling.

At the start of 2015, Son made the leap to the English Premier League, signing with Tottenham Hotspur F.C. as the most expensive Asian player of all time. It was at Tottenham that he truly showcased his versatility, able to play various attacking roles due to his adaptability, and forming a formidable partnership with Harry Kane.

Son continued to perform better in each season through his performances. He became famed for scoring match-winning goals, especially the sensational individual goal against Burnley in December 2019 that earned him the FIFA Puskás Award for the year’s best goal.

Despite not winning a trophy with Spurs, Son has been a World-class player for 6–7 years. It is a travesty that Son and Spurs couldn’t win a single major honour (yet) together. However, they did come excruciatingly close to winning the holy grail of European football in 2018-19 when Spurs made it to the Champions League final.

Son has scored an incredible 122 goals for Spurs in just 305 League appearances. Mauricio Pochettino built the squad around Son and Harry Kane, and the Spurs squad overall between 2016 and 2020 was stupendously great. Son was one of the main leading men alongside Kane.

Heung-min is currently in his tenth season at Spurs, enough to get him a testimonial, and he thoroughly deserves one after the contributions he has made to this Spurs side; even with Kane departing to Bayern Munich, Son’s world-class name and fame have kept Spurs attractive and relevant.

By 2024, Son Heung-min had been rightfully established as one of Asia’s top football talents. He has won the Best Footballer in Asia award nine times, which says everything. We can only hope that Son wins at least one major trophy before departing Spurs because he deserves it.