Former Tottenham captain Son Heung-min has become South Korea’s all-time leading international goalscorer, and he admitted the moment left him emotional. The record fell against Uzbekistan, when his low free-kick slipped through the goalkeeper’s grasp inside the first six minutes, sending his team-mates and the home crowd into celebration.
The previous record of 58 goals belonged to Cha Bum-kun, who once played for Eintracht Frankfurt and Bayer Leverkusen. Son’s strike took him to 59 goals in 151 appearances, and he is also the most-capped player in his country’s history.
Speaking to Korean television afterwards, Son said he felt overwhelmed and had never taken his place in the team for granted, even from his younger days. He credited his team-mates, coaches and manager for helping him score so many goals, but said the biggest thanks belonged to the fans, who have supported him as if his success were their own.
He added that the 16 years he has shared with the supporters mean as much to him as the goals themselves. Son said he does not know how much longer he has left in the national team, but his priority is to keep delivering proud performances for those who love football while wearing the South Korea shirt.
Now 34, Son made his debut in December 2010 in a friendly against Syria before the Asian Games. He has since played at four World Cups, in 2014, 2018, 2022 and 2026, and has won the Korean FA Player of the Year award eight times, in 2013, 2014, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2024.
Even more impressive is that, despite his veteran status, he started all four of South Korea’s matches during this international break and captained the side each time. They beat Ecuador 3-0, lost 4-1 to Uruguay, drew 0-0 with Venezuela and then beat Uzbekistan 2-0, with Son playing both as a centre-forward and on the left wing.
Son admitted the schedule was demanding, both physically and in how closely the games were packed. Even so, he said playing four matches in Korea for the first time in a long while made him happy and turned the camp into an enjoyable experience.
He also thanked the fans directly, saying he had felt down when results were poor because he feared he had let them down. He said he was grateful for the happy weeks they shared across the four games, wished everyone a good end to the year, said he looks forward to seeing them during the away fixtures in November, and asked supporters to travel home safely.
