Son Heung-min recalls his first goal in A-match "I was shaking but wanted to do well"

Son Heung-min recalls his first goal in A-match "I was shaking but wanted to do well"

Blog Article

South Korean soccer's 'captain' Son Heung-min (Tottenham) looked back on his 'beginning' ahead of reaching the 50th

goal milestone in A matches.

The Korean national soccer team will play its final 6th match of Group C of the 2026 North and Central America World

Cup Asian 2nd qualifying round against China at Seoul World Cup Stadium at 8:00 PM on the 11th.

Son Heung-min, recognized as the greatest player of all time not only in Korea but also in Asia, has scored 49 goals for the

national team.

If he scores two more goals in the match against China, he will tie with Daejeon Hana Citizen coach Hwang Seon-hong for

second place (50 goals) in A-match history.

There is another record that Son Heung-min can make in the match against China.

Son Heung-min, who has played in 126 games for the national team over 14 years, will move up to joint 4th place (127

games) along with Lee Young-pyo in terms of appearances in A matches if he plays in the match against China.

At a press conference held at Goyang Stadium on the 10th, a day before the match against China, Son Heung-min said,

"Those who hold records and the active players who are trying to break them are all amazing," and humbled himself by

saying, "It is an honor to have my name mentioned."

He continued, "We worked hard to get to the national team, which is a place that everyone dreams of, but maintaining it is

more difficult than getting it." He added, "Playing for the country is something that requires dedication. Just maintaining

this (scoring and appearance) record is a great honor for me."

In addition to scoring goals to secure victory, it is also 'Captain' Son Heung-min's job to take care of his teammates.

In the 5th match against Singapore, Son Heung-min's appearance helping out his juniors who were making their debuts

garnered attention. In addition, the scene of Son Heung-min's A-match debut goal in the 2011 Qatar Asian Cup match

against India was also 'summoned'.

A reporter asked, "At that time, the scene where Park Ji-sung was diligently poking Son Heung-min became a hot topic,"

and asked how he remembered the situation at 안전 the time.

Son Heung-min chuckled and said, "Did Ji-Sung hyung do that?" and then looked back, saying, "Just being able to kick the

ball with Ji-Sung hyung at the time was really helpful to me. Things like what time to go to bed and what to eat helped a

lot."

He continued, "I still remember it, but I think I was really 'shaking' during the game," and said, "I wanted to do better in

that situation," and "We had to go up to first place in the group. I remember scoring a goal and (Lee) Young-pyo yelling at

me to get the ball."

Son Heung-min said, "If you look at the players now, they are a bit different," and added, "I didn't think I would be able to

get here this quickly. It makes me proud to see the young players playing happy football."

He emphasized, "I want to fix the shortcomings that I see. I never thought that time would come, but I ended up taking on

that role. I want to create an opportunity for young players to feel a little more cautious about their place on the national

team."

Son Heung-min also said, "My mindset toward the national team has never changed," and "Since my debut, my seniors

have set such a good (example) for me. I will try to follow in their footsteps."