'I moved to Germany when I was young, and went through so many really difficult, unimaginable moments'
Tottenham Hotspur and South Korea winger Heung-min Son has opened up on the racial abuse he suffered as a teenager while playing for Hamburg in Germany.
Son moved to the Bundesliga as a youngster, starting his career at Hamburg before moving to Bayer Leverkusen in 2o13. However, he shared his first experiences of racism while speaking at a public event in Seoul on Monday.
The forward admitted that the abuse inspired him to go and seek revenge at a later date. "I moved to Germany when I was young, and went through so many really difficult, unimaginable moments," he said.
"I faced a lot of racism. And while going through such a really difficult time, I had a lot of thoughts on my mind I should get my revenge one day."
Son got his revenge during the 2018 World Cup
The revenge Son referred to occurred in 2018, when South Korea famously knocked Germany out of the World Cup, with the 29-year-old scoring a goal in injury time, leaving German fans in tears.
"When people cry, I'd (usually) want to comfort them and give them a hug," he added.
"But watching German people cry, (I felt) I was able to take revenge by doing something I like."
Last year, 12 men were arrested at addresses across England and Wales after they were
suspected of tweeting racial abuse to Son after Tottenham's game against Manchester United in April, 2021.
All 12 men were handed "community resolutions" and were forced to write written apologies to the 29-year-old.
Son became the first Asian footballer to win the Premier League golden boot last season, scoring 23 goals and is set to link up with the Tottenham squad when they arrive in his home country for a series of pre-season games.
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