Son Heung-min entered Los Angeles on Tuesday, and he plans to stay there for quite some time.
The former Tottenham Hotspur captain received a warm welcome at both Los Angeles International Airport and at Tuesday’s LAFC game, following reports that he intended to join the MLS club on a league-record $26.5 million transfer fee. Tottenham confirmed the move on Wednesday, and Son was officially introduced as a member of LAFC.
“I think it was obviously very emotional, because I gave it [my] all,” Son said, via ESPN. “I just felt like I need a new chapter, I need a new challenge, which is [why] I choose LAFC, and obviously I’m very — I think we can say I’m old, but I still have a good physicality, good legs, and still have a good quality I would say.
“Obviously I’m here to perform, but also that I want to give some advice to the young players.”
The crowd at BMO Stadium got rather loud when he was shown on the big screen on Tuesday night.
Per AFP, roughly 40 fans showed up at LAX hoping to see Son, who spent 10 years at Tottenham and is viewed by many as the greatest Asian soccer player ever. His status as a national hero in South Korea makes him a strong fit for a team in Los Angeles, which contains the largest Korean population of the world outside of the Korean peninsula.
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The city’s large Koreatown neighborhood is only a couple miles from BMO Stadium.
“I’m here, I’m more than happy, and so, so excited seeing all Korean fans outside there,” Son said.
Son gives the LAFC the biggest splash signing since Inter Miami landed Lionel Messi two years ago, though the Vancouver Whitecaps landed a similar coup last week with the signing of Bayern Munich legend Thomas Müller.
Son Heung-min has found a natural landing spot with LAFC. (Patrick T. Fallon / AFP)
(PATRICK T. FALLON via Getty Images)
Son figures to bring a new wave of attention to his club, as well as a dynamic scoring threat for a side that ranks sixth in the MLS Western Conference with a 10-6-6 record. LAFC attempted this dance one year earlier with the Olivier Giroud, which wound up being a significant disappointment. Son projects as a better fit for LAFC’s style, though that could change due to the looming exit of head coach Steve Cherundolo.
