Tottenham's Son Heung-min determined to score for nat'l team

By Joo Kyung-don

SUWON, South Korea, Nov. 6 (Yonhap) -- South Korean attacker Son Heung-min said Monday he is determined to score goals for the national football team like he did for his English Premier League (EPL) club Tottenham Hotspur over the weekend.

Son arrived in South Korea after scoring the winner in the Spurs' 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace at Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday. He is one of 23 players called up by head coach Shin Tae-yong for two friendly matches at home. South Korea will host Colombia in Suwon, south of Seoul, on Friday and will take on Serbia four days later in Ulsan.

The latest goal made Son the highest-scoring Asian in the EPL history with 20 goals total, surpassing former Manchester United midfielder Park Ji-sung. But the 25-year-old forward said he isn't in celebration mode with the national team.

South Korea qualified for the 2018 FIFA World Cup last month, but are winless in their last six matches.

"I know I have to do better than anyone else, so I've joined the national team with determination," he told South Korean reporters before training. "Since I had a good result with my club, I hope I can do the same for the national team."

Son, who has so far netted 18 goals in 59 matches for South Korea, said he will overcome the pressure of scoring with the national team. The former Bayer Leverkusen man ended a year-long international scoring drought last month in a friendly match against Morocco by converting a penalty, but South Korea end up losing 3-1.

"I know it makes me feel good when I score a goal, but that's not as easy as it looks," he said. "Doing the best is not enough since you need to produce results in football."

Son said his goal against Palace -- his second of the season in the league -- has given him confidence and that he is ready to show it for the national team.

"What's important is that I've earned confidence with that goal," he said. "If I can show what I can do best on the pitch, I'm sure we'll get good results."

kdon@yna.co.kr
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