Son vies for top scorer again in the new EPL season

The English Premier League (EPL) 2022-2023 season will begin on Saturday, with Son Heung-min eyeing on the throne of the top scorer for the second consecutive year. Son's team Tottenham Hotspur will play the first game of the new season against Southampton at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England, at 11 p.m. on Saturday. Wolverhampton, which Hwang Hee-chan is playing for, will play their first game of the season in a friendly match against Leeds at the same time on the same day.

Son, who is the first Asian player to become the top scorer last season, has set his sights on being the top scorer for two consecutive seasons. In four pre-season games before the start of the new season, Son claimed two goals and two assists successfully completing the momentum building for a competition to become the top scorer. Of the 25 top scorers in the EPL history, six players have won the top scorer award in a row.

Son welcomes the fact that the opposing team in the opening match is Southampton. Because he was strong enough to score 10 of his 93 goals against Southampton. On Sept. 20, 2020, at the beginning of the 2020-2021 season, the South Korean football star scored four goals in a match against Southampton, leading to a 5-2 victory. He also set the record for most goals scored in a game and his first hat-trick in the EPL.

Son's goal of scoring 100 goals in EPL is expected to be achieved smoothly as only seven goals remain. While playing in the EPL since the 2015-2016 season, he scored double-digit goals every year for the past six seasons, except for his first season, when he scored four goals. His 93 goals are the most scored by any Asian player in the Premier League and rank 38th in the overall EPL.


Bae-Jung Kim wanted@donga.com