Son Heung-min makes history as first Asian player to lead English football’s Premier League in goals

South Korean footballer Son Heung-min has become the first Asian player to win the title of top scorer in the English Premier League.

Son, 29, received the Premier League’s Golden Boot award on Sunday after ending the 2021-2022 season with a career-high 23 goals.

The Tottenham Hotspur attacker scored two goals in the second half of the club’s match against Norwich City in Norwich, England.

The team’s 5-0 victory in the final match of the season helped Tottenham finish in fourth place and clinch a berth in next season’s UEFA Champions League.

Son, who was selected “player of the season” by Eurosport on Friday, shared the Golden Boot award with Mohamed Salah of Liverpool.

“It’s incredible to have this award,” Son was quoted by BBC as saying. “I can’t believe it. I got really emotional. I dreamed of it as a child. Literally it’s my in [sic] hands. I can’t believe it.”

“Until my goal, I was really frustrated that I missed big chances. I told the players I missed the easiest chances and scored one of the toughest tones [sic]. I didn’t give up. I wanted to score today. The team helped me a lot at half-time. They wanted to help me, you could see it today.”

Having secured a 2-0 lead in the first half, Son’s teammates helped set up Son for the Golden Boot.

Son scored his 22nd of the season at the 70-minute mark before scoring the 23rd five minutes later. The goal, which gave Son a lead over Salah, sparked a celebration among Son and his teammates.

Salah scored his 23rd season goal late in his team’s 3-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers, resulting in a tie at the scoring leaderboard.

Scoring titles in the Premier League are shared if multiple players finish the season with the same goal total.

This has been an eventful season for Son, who established new career bests with 23 goals in the Premier League and 24 goals in all competitions, which came from 45 matches. In the 2020-2021 season, Son scored 22.

Tottenham is set to make its first appearance in the top European club competition since the 2019-2020 season.

Featured Image via Tottenham Hotspur

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