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Son, South Korea's attacking talisman, has undergone surgery to
stabilise a fracture around his left eye that he suffered
playing for Tottenham against Olympique de Marseille, leaving
his participation at the World Cup in doubt.
Yet for months it was his finishing that had fans worried.
After finishing as the Premier League's joint-top scorer last
season, the 30-year-old went eight games in all competitions
without a goal to prompt concerns that his golden touch was
deserting him with time ticking down to kick-off in Qatar.
Despite the growing unease within the South Korean fan base that
the sheen might be dimming around the striker at the most
inopportune time, national team boss Paulo Bento was
unconcerned.
"I feel the same and I think the same as when he's scoring a
lot," said Bento when he unveiled his squad for South Korea's
final two home friendlies before the World Cup. "There's no
concern, I will not talk with him about this."
No sooner had those words left Bento's lips than Son was back on
the goal trail.
A hat-trick against Leicester City in the final round of Premier
League matches before the international break was swiftly
followed by two goals in two games for South Korea against Costa
Rica and Cameroon.
Those goals underlined -- yet again -- Son's importance to the
national team and his development into one of the most potent
attackers in the global game.
It has not always been the case during Bento's time in charge,
with Son struggling to replicate his club form while playing for
his country.
In the past the ex-Bayer Leverkusen man was the focal point for
opposing defences, but with the Koreans now boasting an attack
that spreads the threat across Hwang Hee-chan and Hwang Ui-jo,
Son is better able to flourish for the Taeguk Warriors.
Son's devastating pace and precision finishing saw him score 23
times in the Premier League last year, the same total as
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah, with the Tottenham forward amassing
that amount despite not scoring from the penalty spot.
He has only grown in stature since leading the Koreans at the
last World Cup in Russia, where they narrowly missed out on a
place in the knockout rounds.
Son played as an over-age player in the side that won gold at
the Asian Games for South Korea in 2018, earning the forward an
exemption from compulsory military service.
That granted Son the opportunity to prove himself one of Asian
football's greatest exports and, should he recover from his
surgery in time, his goals will be crucial to Korea's hopes of
advancing to the knockout rounds in Qatar.
(Reporting by Michael Church; editing by Clare Fallon)
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