Seoul: Having only signed with Newcastle United less than two weeks ago, South Korean teen forward Park Seung-soo already has two matches under his belt with the Premier League club. Though those appearances have come as a substitute in the club's two preseason matches in South Korea, Park, 18, has emerged from them feeling inspired to keep improving.
According to Yonhap News Agency, it didn't hurt that the second of those two matches came Sunday night against Tottenham Hotspur's South Korean superstar Son Heung-min, who was playing in his final match with the team on his home soil. Son announced Saturday that he will leave Tottenham this summer, and he bid an emotional adieu to nearly 65,000 fans at Seoul World Cup Stadium on Sunday.
"I am so grateful that Son Heung-min has been leading the way for South Korean football," Park said, after subbing in for Jacob Murphy in the 77th minute. With Son getting subbed out in the 65th minute, Park didn't get a chance to face the 33-year-old veteran during the match. They exchanged a few words afterward.
Park had expressed his desire to swap shirts with Son but refrained from asking for it as he "didn't feel comfortable asking for his uniform in his final match here." With his career ahead of him, Park doesn't just want to have Son's shirt; he aspires to enjoy the kind of career Son had over ten years with Tottenham.
Son is fifth on the club's all-time scoring list with 173 goals and captained Spurs to the UEFA Europa League title in May, marking their first trophy in 17 years. "First of all, I want to become a player that everyone recognizes and acknowledges," Park said. "My dream is to become a world-class player, and I will keep working hard in order to realize that dream."
Park was previously with Suwon Samsung Bluewings in the K League 2, the second-tier competition in South Korea, before Newcastle signed him. Last year, Park became the youngest player ever to appear in a K League match and also to score in a K League match. Despite Park's considerable promise, it's not often that a player from a second-division club in South Korea joins a Premier League side.
Newcastle head coach Eddie Howe credited the work of his scouts for discovering a talent in this part of the world and stated, "We're constantly looking at every league or trying to cover every league as detailed as we can." He praised the youngster, saying, "I've been really, really impressed with him. He's come into our training very quickly. He's been almost thrown into some game situations, and I think he's done really well. So I think it seems like he's got a really great personality. He's fearless. I can't praise him enough for his impact in the two games and the training sessions that he's done with us."