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| ReutersYonhap News |
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Is it a hint of staying or a high-level strategy for negotiations.
Tottenham Hotspur coach Thomas Frank has expressed his expectations for Son Heung-min (33) in the new season, drawing keen attention to the background. On the 29th (Korean time), Frank appeared on the British soccer YouTube channel 「Men in Blazers」. At the meeting, coach Frank said, `Son Heung-min's achievements for this team are amazing. He is a great player who has dedicated himself to Tottenham." Then "He is a player with a good mindset, sincerity, and leadership. You can play a very good role in this team in the new season. So expectations are high.'
Coach Frank's gaze toward Son Heung-min at the preseason press conference was ambiguous. He said, `Son Heung-min was the captain last season. The new season's captaincy has not yet been delivered." Son Heung-min admitted that he has devoted himself to Tottenham for the past 10 years and made a contribution to lifting the Europa League trophy last season, but did not provide a clear answer on his position. However, the position has changed 180 degrees in just two weeks. The remarks can be interpreted as putting more weight on the possibility of staying in the new season.
British media predicted that Tottenham will push for Son Heung-min's transfer ahead of the new season. Son Heung-min, who scored only seven goals last season, implemented an option to extend his one-year contract, but this was regarded as a means to get the transfer fee. Public opinion that Son Heung-min should be transferred immediately after the end of the season was dominated. It was also reported that Turkiye Fenerbahce and Saudi Arabian League teams are showing interest in Son Heung-min.
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In the midst of this, LAFC of the U.S. Major League Soccer (MLS) has emerged rapidly. Olivier Giroud, a designated player, moved to fill the spot with Son Heung-min. Recently, it was reported that the general manager went directly to England to persuade Son Heung-min. In the UK, Tottenham is expected to release him after completing the Korean tour, which has a penalty clause related to Son Heung-min's participation.
However, the atmosphere seems to be changing little by little these days. FourFourTwo, a British soccer media outlet, reported on the 28th that Son Heung-min's salary expectations exceed the amount prepared by LAFC. The media added that Son Heung-min is also likely to compete with the MLS's highest salary, with the transfer fee estimated to be tens of millions of dollars that Tottenham will demand. He also pointed out that `The player who currently earns the most in MLS is Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), earning USD 20.5 million (about KRW 27.9 billion) per year' In theory, third parties such as famous sports brands can contribute to Son Heung-min's profits in addition to his salary, but like Saudi Arabian teams, it will be difficult to meet the demands of players unless they are a club with state support.' In the meantime, Los Angeles, home to LAFC, is the city with the largest number of Korean residents in the world. LAFC believes it will be able to recover a significant portion of its investment in recruiting Son Heung-min as a profitable business.
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Son Heung-min is currently Tottenham's highest salary. The Sun, a British daily newspaper, reported in May that Son Heung-min is receiving 190,000 pounds (about 352.74 million won) per week. Converting to annual salary excluding off-season, which is usually excluded from the contract period, amounts to more than 16 billion won. This amount is the highest in the Tottenham squad. Until now, Tottenham has reportedly wanted a transfer fee similar to that paid when Son Heung-min was hired from Leverkusen in 2015 (£35 million, about 64.9 billion won). As LAFC's interest became visible, some analysts said Tottenham could make a `grand decision' to pave the way for Son Heung-min, who has contributed to the team over the past decade. However, as LAFC's interest materialized, Tottenham's position seems to change little by little.
Currently, LAFC's highest salary is Dennis Vuanga. His annual salary is 3.7 million dollars (about 5.1 billion won). MLS is implementing a designated player system that allows up to three players who are not subject to salary cap. Miami was able to recruit Messi because of this designated player system. The system is also known to have a clause that allows the team to pay a certain level of annual salary and pay more than that at the league secretariat. If Son Heung-min, who is receiving three times the salary of LAFC's highest salary, believes that it helps the MLS box office, the secretariat can support the transfer. However, it seems to hit a realistic wall.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
