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| Photo=Capture the relay screen |
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| 사진=LA FC SNS 캡처 |
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| AFP Yonhap News |
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Maybe the best partner since Harry Kane. Son Heung-min found his best friend in attack.
LA FC won 4-1 in the 19th round of the U.S. Major League Soccer (MLS) in the 2025 season against Real Salt Lake at America First Field in Sandy, Utah on the 18th (Korea time).
Son Heung-min was the main player in the victory. Son Heung-min succeeded in his first hat trick since advancing to MLS in the game. Son Heung-min, who had already shown signs by scoring the first goal in the third minute of the first half, completed the hat trick by adding points in the 17th minute of the first half and the 37th minute of the second half, respectively. It was the first time in two years since he scored a hat trick against Burnley in the English Premier League (EPL) in September 2023.
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| AFP Yonhap News |
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Along with Son Heung-min, who showed off his good condition, there was a colleague who contributed the most to completing his hat trick. That's Dennis Vuangada. Buanga is considered one of the best MLS scorers this season. With 19 goals in the league, he is the third-leading scorer after San Sarge (21 goals) and Lionel Messi (20 goals). He is showing a pace that can aim for the top scorer this season. He is one goal away from becoming the first MLS player to score 20 goals in three consecutive seasons.
In particular, Buanga spread his wings after joining Son Heung-min. In the six games Son Heung-min played, Buanga scored as many as six goals. In the previous league match against San Jose EarthQuake, Buanga scored a hat trick, and in this Salt Lake match, Son Heung-min completed a hat trick, and the two players combined for two consecutive games. The MLS Secretariat also recognized Buanga as Son's partner, saying, `Buanga has established himself as Son's strong running mate in LA.'
Buanga helped Son Heung-min score the last point of the match. In the 37th minute of the second half, Buanga had a good chance in the counterattack. It was a chance to finish directly as a striker. But Buanga focused on Son Heung-min running in. He calmly delivered the ball between the goalkeeper and the defense, and Son Heung-min enjoyed the joy of his first MLS hat trick by pushing it in.
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| Photo=Capture the relay screen |
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The two players, who formed the so-called 'Heungbu' duo, even showed chemistry linking the 'Sonke' duo. After Son Heung-min scored his third goal on the day, he also imitated each other's ceremony. Son Heung-min tried to roll forward to imitate Buanga, who usually does front-dumbling. Buanga also followed the forward roll, and after that, Buanga followed Son Heung-min's 'Click' ceremony.
LA FC's offense this season is expected to be nervous with the emergence of the 'Heungbu' duo, who have begun to show off their best chemistry and chemistry, and the most threatening offensive duo to MLS.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
