His journey began Sunday morning, August 3, in Seoul, 55 miles southwest of Son Heung-Min’s South Korean hometown, when Son and the Tottenham Hotspur team he was captaining for the final time kicked off their exhibition match against Newcastle at Seoul World Cup Stadium.
It was 4:00 a.m. in Los Angeles when the match began, but a large swath of the world’s city was awake and tuned in to the friendly being played on the other side of the world. The rumors had grown louder that Son, the greatest Asian footballer in history, was about to join Los Angeles Football Club after a historic 10-year run with Spurs.
For Son, the final whistle of Tottenham’s 1-1 draw with Newcastle began a five-day frenzy as he tearfully finished his Spurs career in the country where his life had begun 33 years earlier. A series of conversations with LAFC in the South Korean capital followed the match, and then a 14-hour flight to LA, followed almost immediately by a packed, introductory press conference at BMO Stadium, and then a training session, a last-minute visa approval process, and another jet ride to a city he had never set foot in before. New rumors were swirling that Son might make his LAFC debut in Chicago, in the Black & Gold’s Saturday night fixture against the Fire.
From Seoul to LA to Chicago, from Tottenham legend to Hollywood celebrity to MLS rookie—all in 130 hours. The word whirlwind doesn’t do it justice.
“This was an exciting time for a whole week,” Son said after the Chicago match, in which he played a pivotal role. “I mean, joining LAFC was huge. [There] was only one thing that I wanted to do – today being on the pitch – and it was fantastic.”
Having just flown from the city with the largest Korean population outside of Asia (Los Angeles) to the city with the fifth-largest Korean population in the U.S. (Chicago), Son was greeted at Seatgeek Stadium by Korean flags, Son jerseys, and supportive signs and shouts. Despite the preceding five days, the star winger mustered the energy to contribute nearly 40 minutes, and the game-deciding 40-yard run, to LAFC’s 2-2 road result.
“Wow, I really enjoyed it,” Son said afterward, smiling and sweaty. “I mean, you never had this welcome from away fans [when] I used to play in the Premier League. When I played away they were always booing me— always booing the [visiting] players. So it was nice to see people celebrating, people enjoying the football … I'm very happy, and being with the boys it's just a fantastic feeling.”
“You've seen the videos that have come out,” said his new teammate, LAFC defender Ryan Hollingshead. “He's going all around LA for the last five days. The guy hasn't slept, he hasn't eaten. Because the city's so excited, right? They're already asking him to throw out the first pitch, they're asking him to throw the jump ball for the NBA [game] – they want him doing everything already, and then he still is trying to come on this trip to be part of the team … It shows that the club goes after not only good footballers but good people that want to help this club become the best. Really excited about having him, and couldn't speak more highly of the last couple days we've had him.”
At his mid-week press conference in LA, Son had said: “The Korean fans I saw outside yesterday during the [LAFC vs. Tigres] game, watching you guys supporting like crazy, it was just insane, I wanted to run onto the pitch and show you my performance.” He got his chance in the Chicago suburbs, where LAFC took on a Fire side that was unbeaten in its previous three matches.
“As soon as he arrived and we got news that his visa was approved and filed and he was eligible to play,” LAFC manager Steve Cherundolo said, “we obviously made plans for that case and plans if it didn't happen. We were ready either way."
“Explaining how we play to a player of his level,” Cherundolo continued, “it doesn't take very long. He's incredibly intelligent, and obviously talented … so it's easy for a player like that to be integrated. And on top of that, [he’s] extremely charismatic, well-liked, and I think an away game and a trip with the boys was exactly what we needed to get this started.”
The wide-open, end-to-end contest was tied 1-1 in the 59th minute when Son left the warmup area beyond the goal line, walked toward Cherundolo, and changed into his white LAFC number 7 top, the crowd’s expectant murmurs turning to cheers. Fourth official Muhammad Hassan held up the night’s most important sign, the one showing a red “30” and a green “7,” announcing that the former Premier League Golden Boot winner was coming on for his teenage teammate, David Martínez.
Immediately Son was dangerous, threatening the Chicago goal with three separate actions as LAFC pushed to equalize the game after Chicago took a 2-1 lead in the 70th minute. The hosts nearly made it 3-1 but were thwarted by a world-class save from Son’s longtime Tottenham teammate, goalie Hugo Lloris, which led to counter-attacking pass from Nathan Ordaz that rolled the ball into Son’s path as he ran at full-tilt. Fire defender Carlos Terán crashed into Son’s left leg in the penalty area, a collision that referee Ricardo Montero Araya deemed a penalty following a VAR review. LAFC All-Star Denis Bouanga converted the spot kick to knot the game 2-2.
If not for a sliding clearance from Fire midfielder Jonathan Dean, Son would have found the matchwinner in the third minute of stoppage time, but Dean’s deflection saved the day for the hosts and sent LAFC and its newest star home with one point instead of three.
“Results-wise, I think we are all a little bit disappointed because when you play the game, you always want to win,” Son said. “But in general I was very happy about the performance. I had just two sessions with the team and I’m generally very, very happy.”
When he was asked about the reception he received in the Windy City, Son beamed. “It was my first time being here, but there [were] a lot of Korean flags, Korean fans. This is so great to see, the people celebrating. And seeing the Korean flags made me very, very proud. I have always said that I want to always give something back. Supporting somebody is never free, you know, they have to make a lot of effort. So I'm very, very grateful.”
Of the immediate future, Son observed: “I think it's time to move on and next week [against New England] is gonna be huge game as well. So another week of sessions, then I'll be physically and mentally ready. More than this game.”
The league, the continent, and the world, are all on notice.
