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Son Heung-min says Chinese players and media’s ‘not pleasant’ comments fired him up to silence Shenzhen
- Tottenham superstar admits he was upset by opponents saying, ‘They don’t care about me and know how to stop me’
- ‘When I play football I respect all players,’ 31-year-old forward adds, after scoring two goals in South Korea’s 3-0 win
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Son Heung-min revealed “not pleasant” comments from Chinese players and media inspired his star performance in South Korea’s 3-0 Fifa World Cup qualifier win on Tuesday night in Shenzhen.
The Tottenham superstar scored two and set up the other goal to seal a fourth straight victory over China for his team, silencing a sell-out home crowd of more than 40,000 in Shenzhen.
The 31-year-old forward had been given a hero’s welcome by home fans at the airport on Sunday, and such is his popularity, there were even Chinese fans wearing his Spurs replica shirts in the stands at Shenzhen Universiade Sports Centre, which prompted anger among home supporters and some ugly scenes.
Son’s star billing was underlined when he took his international tally to 38 goals in 114 appearances thanks to an 11th-minute penalty and a deft header from a corner just before half-time.
After slotting in his penalty, Son pointedly celebrated by putting a finger to his lips.
“Honestly, when I heard they [the China team and media] were saying they know how to stop me and they don’t care about me, it was not pleasant,” Son told South Korean broadcasters afterwards.
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