World-class striker Heung-Min Son is a Korean soccer icon. Now the Tottenham star tells how he "struggled a lot with racism" in his early days in Germany at HSV and in Leverkusen - and how sweet the revenge at the 2018 World Cup is when he sends the DFB team home.
South Korean top striker Heung-Min Son has for the first time publicly commented on incidents of racism he was confronted with in Germany. "I struggled a lot with racism," said the attacker of English first division soccer team Tottenham Hotspur in Seoul: "During this difficult time, I thought a lot about wanting revenge one day." He finally took revenge in the 2-0 group win against the German national team at the 2018 World Cup in Russia - the "most memorable moment of his career".
Son made the statements during a meeting with fans Monday in the South Korean capital after a press conference. Video recording of the session was uploaded to Youtube later in the day. The Tottenham Hotspur star was asked about his most memorable goal and game of his club and international career. Son had earned his 100th cap in a friendly against Chile in early June and said that game was high on his list, as was the Premier League season finale against Norwich City in late May when he became Asia's first top-scorer with two goals best league in the world.
However, Son said his finest moment was the 2-0 win over Germany in the final Group F game at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Son scored the team's second goal in injury time and sent the defending champion and world number one led by world champion coach Joachim Löw home. A disgrace for the DFB-Elf.
The 29-year-old Son, who played for Hamburger SV and Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, said he had little sympathy for the opposition and the disappointed German fans after his stoppage-time goal. "When people cry, I usually want to comfort them and hug them," said Son. "But when I saw the German people crying" after the win against the DFB team, he didn't have that feeling.
Son, who left Korea for Germany as a 16-year-old to start his European career, said of the discrimination he faced: "I went to Germany very early and experienced so many difficult moments that you can hardly imagine it can't imagine."
In England, too, the Spurs striker, who became the first Asian footballer to win the Premier League top scorer with 23 goals this season, has repeatedly struggled with racism since moving to England in 2015. Last year, eight suspects were arrested who are said to have racially insulted the South Korean on Twitter.
