UN-SON(G) HERO

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Have you ever been in a situation where you constantly deliver quality and give your best, but when the time for recognition comes you're continuously overlooked? Perhaps you've been in situations where you sometimes just wonder when your efforts will eventually be appreciated and rewarded. Maybe you have, maybe you've not, but I believe that Son Heung Min has been in those situations many times, after being overlooked many times over the course of his stint at Tottenham Hotspurs.

The South Korean magician has been a shining light since his arrival at the north London club from Germany. Son is a versatile forward who's comfortable playing either as a right wing forward, left wing forward, or as a Centre forward. He can also play as a secondary striker in a two-striker formation.
Son who was born in the Gangwon province in South Korea, left for Hamburger SV in Germany at the age of 16. In 2013, he moved to Bayer Leverkusen. He then became the most expensive Asian player in history when he moved to Tottenham in 2015 for £22m.

Since arriving at Tottenham, Son has been a nightmare to opposing defenders. Infact Son has arguably been their most consistent performer of the last 7 years. It is no wonder that the different coaches who's gone through the club has found him to be a major part of their plans.

Son has been an epitome of class and professionalism. He's never been caught criticizing his colleagues or coaches, he's never been caught whining or getting angry about being substituted. He's s been known to just settle down and do his job without complains, not minding the coach's tactics or where he's being played. His rise and improvement at Tottenham has been gradual and steady as could be seen with his stats.

He scored 4 goals in the 2015/2016 season, 14 goals in 2016/2017, 12 goals in both the 2017/2018 and 2018/2019 seasons, 11 goals in 2019/2020, 17 goals in 2020/2021, and 23 in 2021/2022 season. This has culminated in a total of 93 goals and 46 assists in 232 games. It's good to note that most of these goals were scored as a forward.

During this period, he became the Asian top goalscorer in both the premier league and the UEFA Champions League history. In 2019, he followed in the footsteps of his countryman Park Ji-Sung in becoming only the second Asian player to reach and start a champions league final. Just yesterday, he became the first Asian player to win the EPL golden boot with 23 goals. To make this even more special, none of his 23 goals included a penalty. And out of his 23 goals, 11 were scored with his right foot, while 12 were scored with his left. It takes a supremely talented player to do that. Now that's the stuff of heroes.

I guess Son's situation is a result of what anyone would get when they're playing alongside the country's golden boy. The media just finds a way to amplify Kane's achievements which then seems to undermine Son's own achievements.

Perhaps if he was playing for a team like Liverpool, Manchester City or even Manchester United, then maybe he would have gotten more accolades and recognition that he deserves. The only thing missing from his portfolio at Tottenham is a trophy. I only hope that gets one very soon, or perhaps he seeks out one at another club.

If there's a player that deserves more recognition and respect than he gets currently, then it's definitely Son Heung-Min. I hope before his time runs out, the media realize what the Tottenham fans see when they sing “Nice one, Sonny, nice one Son/Nice one, Sonny, let’s have another one.”

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