It was Son Heung-min's responsibility to lift the trophy that came to Tottenham for the first time in 17 years.
Tottenham won 1-0 with Brennan Johnson's winning goal in the 42nd minute in the 2024-2025 Europa League (UEL) final against Manchester United at Estadio San Mames in Bilbao, Spain, at 4 a.m. on the 22nd (Korea time). Tottenham qualified for the European Champions League next season.
Tottenham, which has been sluggish throughout this season and has missed the English Premier League (EPL), League Cup, and FA Cup, escaped from the military. Tottenham won the league cup for the first time in 17 years since lifting it in the 2007-2008 season. It was the first time in 41 years that he won the European tournament since winning the UEFA Cup in the 1983-1984 season.
Son Heung-min is also out of the king of no spectatorship. Son Heung-min is undoubtedly a "world class". In addition to being the first Asian to become the top scorer in the English Premier League (EPL) in the 2021-2022 season, he won the FIFA (International Football Federation) Puskas Award, the EPL Player of the Month Award, and the Asia Award, which is given to the player who scored the best goal of the year in 2020. Including the awards that were not listed, he has had a brighter career than anyone else.
The only thing that Son Heung-min didn't have was the trophy. He has enjoyed the best stages in the world, including the German Bundesliga, EPL, UCL, and FIFA World Cup, but has never been at the top. The gold medal at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games is the only winning record. However, the Asian Games are not organized by FIFA. He reached the final of the UCL 2020-2021 League Cup in the 2018-2019 season, but all finished second. Son Heung-min finally added a trophy to his career.
Tottenham overwhelmed Manchester United with a strong defense. Brennan Johnson's winning goal in the 42nd minute of the first half was well defended. Son Heung-min, who started from the bench, watched the game with more earnestness than anyone else. He said before the game "I've been talking for years, but the reason I stayed at Tottenham was that I wanted to do things that others couldn't. You need all the pieces to make a puzzle. I think all the pieces were right, but in the end, the last piece, which is the most important, seems to be lacking. I think I've been wandering around for 10 years after finding that piece, and I hope I can do that puzzle this time"I'm determined.
Son Heung-min, who was substituted in the 22nd minute of the second half, defended one goal with a dedicated play. He blocked and blocked Manchester United's attack with a movement close to wingback. Manchester United's last wave of attacks ended, and the end whistle eventually went off. Son Heung-min burst into tears as he secured the long-awaited victory. Although he was unable to play on the day due to injury, he was caught crying while holding his vice-captain James Madison who came down to the ground. It wasn't a regret, it was tears of joy.
Son Heung-min, who went around every corner of the stadium with the national flag on his body, was at the center of the victory ceremony. Son Heung-min, who moved to the center with the trophy at Tottenham's captaincy, lifted the trophy amid cheers and celebrations from his teammates. Son Heung-min is the first Asian player to lead the victory ceremony in the European club competition. Park Ji-sung and Cha Bum-keun won the European Champions League and the UEFA Cup, but they did not stand at the center of the ceremony. Like Son Heung-min, who wrote many first history, he took the first path again this time.
Son Heung-min became the first Tottenham captain to lift the trophy since 2008. Even Harry Kane couldn't do it. Kane left for Bayern Munich in the summer of 2023 after being frustrated by his continued failure to win at Tottenham. He won the Bundesliga this season and finally won his first championship. Son Heung-min remained at Tottenham despite numerous love calls. Ten years of dedication. I finally got the reward. Son Heung-min rose to the rank of Tottenham legend in name and reality.
Son Heung-min has 173 goals and 101 assists in 454 Tottenham games. Tottenham ranks fifth in the most appearances in history, fourth in the most goals scored, and first in the most assists. Son Heung-min, whose record alone is enough, has solidified his position as a living legend for Tottenham with this victory. Son Heung-min also said in an interview with TNT Sports after the game "I'll say I'm a legend now. Why isn't it working. Just today! No one has done it in 17 years. With cool players today, it will probably be a legend of the club. This is what I've always dreamed of. Today is the day my dream came true. I'm the happiest man in the world. I wanted it so badly and I've dreamed of this game for the last seven days. I can rest in peace now."
Reporter Park Chan-joon vanbasten@sportschosun.com
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
