Son Heung-min (33, Tottenham Hotspur) has finally won his first career trophy with his team. The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) selected Son Heung-min as the player most deserving to celebrate Tottenham's victory, recognizing his dedication over the past 10 years. After the final match, his image was displayed on the main page of the website.

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

Son Heung-min, who waited on the bench, entered the field in the 67th minute, replacing Richarlison, while the team was leading 1-0.

Son Heung-min, who had been sidelined with a foot injury for a month, gained match fitness through two Premier League matches before this game. He played about 30 minutes in the match against Crystal Palace on the 11th and started in the match against Aston Villa on the 17th, playing for over 70 minutes.

Ahead of the match against Manchester United, there was significant interest in whether Son Heung-min would start. Manager Ange Postecoglou's choice was to start with Richarlison and keep him on the bench for the time being.

The 'hero of the winning goal' was Brennan Johnson. He darted in and stretched his foot for a delivery from the left flank in the 41st minute. The ball deflected off a Manchester United defender. Johnson quickly made contact with the ball, which had slightly altered its direction, and it was sucked into the Manchester United goal. The Tottenham players embraced each other in joy.

Son Heung-min, who had sat on the bench during the first half and cheered for Johnson's goal, was actively running after being substituted in the middle of the second half. He attempted to create a shooting opportunity by utilizing a counterattack in the 81st minute. However, he failed to control the ball in the physical battle with the defenders. He also took a direct free kick in the 85th minute.

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

Finally, Son Heung-min has broken the 'non-title' curse in his career.

Having debuted professionally in Germany with Hamburg in 2010 and passed through Bayer Leverkusen before joining Tottenham in 2015, Son Heung-min has faced many near misses in pursuit of a trophy. He finished 2nd in the Premier League in the 2016-2017 season and was runner-up in the UEFA Champions League (UCL) final against Liverpool in the 2018-2019 season. He also could not overcome Manchester City in the EFL Cup final in the 2020-2021 season.

Until this match, the only trophy that Son Heung-min had experienced since his professional debut was the gold medal he won as part of the South Korean national football team in the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games.

Finally, Son Heung-min has lifted a trophy with his team. He realized his dream of winning after 15 years of professional debut.

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

As soon as victory was confirmed, Son Heung-min was captured on the broadcast screen embracing the coaching staff and shedding tears. He also greeted the fans while draped in the Taegeukgi.

The UEFA website congratulated Tottenham on the victory. It set the main screen with a photo of Son Heung-min proudly lifting the UEL trophy. It added, "Son Heung-min expressed his joy in taking on the captain's role when Tottenham lifted its first major tournament trophy since 2008." Tottenham embraced a trophy for the first time in 17 years since the 2007-2008 League Cup. Finishing this season in 17th place in the Premier League, Tottenham secured a spot in next season's UCL as the UEL champion.

In addition, UEFA noted, "The scene of Tottenham players dancing and singing with fans in the corner was impressive. There was also a special moment when Son Heung-min, who returned close to the stands, received cheers on his own. The player most deserving of this victory is South Korean forward Son Heung-min."

According to UEFA, no team has won more than Tottenham in the UEFA Cup (the predecessor of the UEL) to the UEL. Tottenham surpassed their joint record of 97 wins previously held with AS Roma. They achieved their 98th victory on this day.

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