Spurs star Son Heung-min becomes 1st Asian to score 100 goals in Premier League
Son Heung-min has become the first Asian player to score 100 Premier League goals, the latest milestone in a career full of many.
Son hit the century mark with a 10th-minute strike against Brighton & Hove Albion at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Saturday. Son is also the first player to register 100 goals and 50 assists for Spurs.
Tottenham won the match 2-1 to improve to 53 points, good for fifth place and three back of Manchester United.
The right-footed shot from outside the box was Son's seventh of the Premier League season and 11th in all competitions.
Son is the only Asian among 34 players with at least 100 goals in the Premier League.
The 30-year-old attacker began his senior club career in Germany in 2010, spending three seasons with Hamburger SV and another three with Bayer Leverkusen before taking his talent to London.
Son scored four goals in the 2015-2016 season for Tottenham, his first Premier League campaign, and went on to score in double figures in the next six seasons in a row. He scored a career-high 23 goals last season en route to becoming the first Asian to win the Golden Boot as the league's scoring leader.
This season, Son has eight matches left to try to extend his double-digit scoring streak to seven.
The emotional Son dedicated his landmark goal to his late grandfather, who Son said passed away earlier this month.
"This was something that I dreamed for. It is an amazing achievement which I wouldn't have had without my teammates," he told BBC Sport afterward. "Scoring 100 goals in the Premier League is a massive thing. I was really emotional because I have had tough moments in the last few weeks. My granddad passed away, and it was not easy. I want to send that goal to him."
Son also said he hoped his success would inspire young football players.
"I hope all the Asian players, especially in South Korea, look at this achievement and believe they can do it as well," Son said. "It's a good thing for Asia and me to take a big responsibility to be a good example to help the young guys. I want them to believe an Asian player can do amazing things in the Premier League."
As for having fallen short of the high bar he set for himself last season, Son said: "Sometimes you always expect an amazing season and think it will be the same (as last year), but there can be more pressure. I am frustrated, but I'm not the perfect player so I need to look at my weaknesses."
The Korea Herald
Asia News Network
