Sonny determined to overcome pressure and recover his form

“Expectations were high, and it was a lot of pressure.”

Tottenham’s Son Heung-min, the first Asian footballer to score 100 goals in the English Premier League (EPL), said the pressure to outperform himself from last season impacted his goal-scoring form this season. But he refused to make excuses for his inability to deliver his best performance.

In an interview with the British media outlet Evening Standard on Monday (local time), Son said, “Last season was fantastic. Becoming the top scorer was a magical moment, and it gave me tremendous confidence. But, this season, everyone had high expectations for me to score more goals, and this too much attention put a lot of pressure on me.” Last season, the South Korean found a total of 23 goals, sharing the Golden Boot award with Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah, becoming the first Asian player to be named the EPL’s top scorer.

Son scored his 100th goal in the EPL and his 7th of the season in a match against Brighton on Saturday. However, his performance of this season has been notably different from his previous season’s. Except for his debut season in 2015-16, when he scored only four goals, Son had scored double-digit goals for six consecutive seasons until last season.

“There are many, many excuses I could make about my performance this season, but I am not the type to make excuses and say, ‘It wasn’t my true self,’” Son said, admitting that he failed to show his best performance this season. “I enjoy pressure and I’d like to overcome pressure. I am not perfect. I am in my 30s, but I can still improve.”

Tottenham Hotspur have eight games left this season. Last season, Son dramatically won the Golden Boot after scoring nine goals in the last eight league matches. If he manages to score three more goals, he will have scored double-digit goals for the seventh consecutive season. “The remaining eight games are very important for me and my team,” Son said. “Scoring my 100th EPL goal is great, but what’s important is winning the game and getting three points for the team. I want to continue to show steady performance and help the team in as many ways as possible.”

As of Tuesday, the Hotspurs are in 5th place in the league with 53 points (16-5-9). They are three points behind Manchester United (56 points) that are in 4th place but have played one game less. Only the top four teams in the EPL can advance to the UEFA Champions League next season.


hun@donga.com