"I apologize for making you wait so long."

Son Heung-min (33, Tottenham Hotspur) has finally broken the 'no trophy' curse.

Tottenham won 1-0 against Manchester United in the single-match final of the 2024-2025 season Europa League (UEL) at Estadio San Mames in Bilbao, Spain, on the 22nd (Korea time).

Finally, Tottenham has embraced a trophy for the first time in 17 years since the 2007-2008 season League Cup. Although they finished 17th in the Premier League this season, they secured a place in the next season's Champions League (UCL) as the UEL champion.

On this day, Son Heung-min, who was waiting on the bench, entered the field in the 67th minute, substituted for Richarlison, with the team leading 1-0.

Son Heung-min had been sidelined for a month due to a foot injury but gained match fitness through two Premier League games leading up to this match. He played around 30 minutes against Crystal Palace on the 11th and started against Aston Villa on the 17th, playing for over 70 minutes.

Ahead of the match against Manchester United, there was significant interest in the United Kingdom regarding whether Son Heung-min would start. Ange Postecoglou's choice was to keep him on the bench and send out Richarlison.

The 'hero of the winning goal' is Brennan Johnson.

He dashed in from the left side in the 41st minute to reach a cross that came in like a delivery. The ball deflected off Manchester United's Luke Shaw before changing directions slightly, and Johnson quickly made contact with the ball, which was sucked into the Manchester United goal. The Tottenham players embraced each other in joy.

Son Heung-min, who had been sitting on the bench during the first half and cheered for Johnson's goal, ran diligently after being substituted in the middle of the second half. In the 81st minute, he tried to create a shooting opportunity during a counterattack, but he could not maintain possession due to a struggle with the defense. He also took a free-kick in the 85th minute.

According to European statistics site 'Footmob', Son Heung-min played for 23 minutes (excluding extra time), touched the ball 13 times, had a passing accuracy of 33% (2 successful / 6 attempts), a dribbling success rate of 100% (1 successful / 1 attempt), made one defensive action, recovered the ball 3 times, and had a ground duel success rate of 40% (2 successful / 5 attempts).

Finally, Son Heung-min has broken his career 'no trophy' curse.

Since making his professional debut in Hamburg, Germany, in 2010 and moving to Bayer Leverkusen before joining Tottenham in 2015, Son Heung-min has repeatedly missed out on winning trophies. He finished 2nd in the Premier League in the 2016-2017 season and was the runner-up in the UCL final against Liverpool in the 2018-2019 season. He also failed to overcome Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final in the 2020-2021 season.

Until this day, the only title Son Heung-min had experienced was winning the gold medal at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games as a member of the South Korean national football team.

Now, Son Heung-min has finally lifted the trophy with his team, fulfilling his dream of winning after 15 years of professional debut.

Son Heung-min has become the second South Korean UEL champion, following former national team coach Cha Bum-kun. Cha won the UEFA Cup (now UEL) with Frankfurt in 1980 and 1988. Kim Dong-jin and Lee Ho also claimed victory in this tournament with Zenit St. Petersburg in 2008.

After the victory was confirmed, Son Heung-min was captured on the broadcast screen hugging the coaching staff, visibly emotional. He was also seen embracing his father, Son Woong-jung, and then greeted fans while draping the Korean flag over himself.

Son Heung-min stated through the club, "You have really waited a long time. I apologize for making you wait so long. Thanks to the fans who have supported me day and night, I could put together my perfect puzzle. I sincerely thank you, and I will continue to strive to show good performances in the future."

Tottenham sent applause through social media, stating, "Son Heung-min is the UEL champion" and referred to him as "a legend writing a new history."

The UEFA website also congratulated Tottenham on their victory, especially highlighting Son Heung-min. The main screen was set to a photo of Son Heung-min lifting the UEL trophy.

UEFA noted, "It was impressive to see the Tottenham players dancing and singing in the corner with the fans. There was also a special moment when Son Heung-min returned close to the stands and received solo cheers. The player who deserves to enjoy this victory the most is South Korean forward Son Heung-min."

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