Son Heung-min, Hwang Hee-chan finish Premier League season marked by individual success, club woes

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, May 20 (Yonhap) -- Son Heung-min of Tottenham Hotspur and Hwang Hee-chan of Wolverhampton Wanderers have wrapped up their 2023-2024 Premier League seasons that featured some individual success negated by their clubs' struggles.

Son picked up an assist in Tottenham's 3-0 win over Sheffield United at Bramall Lane in Sheffield, England, on Sunday (local time). By setting up the first of Dejan Kulusevski's two goals, Son finished the season with 17 goals and 10 assists -- the third time he reached double figures in both goals and assists in a Premier League season. He ended up tied with eight other players for third place in the assists category.

Son, 31, became the sixth player in Premier League history -- and the first Asian -- to accomplish that feat at least three times, joining Eric Cantona, Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba and Mohamed Salah.

In the goal department, Son has now scored in double figures in eight consecutive seasons, with his 17 goals putting him alone in eighth place. During this past campaign, Son scored his 120th goal to pull into a tie with Steven Gerrard for 22nd place on the all-time list, and appeared in his 400th match for Spurs in April.

Even Son, named the club's new captain before the season, couldn't save Spurs from yet another disappointing season.

Spurs opened their season with a 10-match undefeated streak, with eight wins and two draws. It was immediately followed by a five-match winless skid, which featured three straight losses. Their roller-coaster ride continued before they hit rock bottom with four losses in a row from mid-April to early May that knocked them out of the top-four contention and cost them a spot in the UEFA Champions League.

That closing victory over Sheffield helped Tottenham finish fifth with 66 points, as they salvaged a spot in the second-tier UEFA Europa League next season.

Also on Sunday, Hwang and Wolves were shut out by Liverpool 2-0 at Anfield. The South Korean forward finished the campaign with a career-high 12 goals, along with three assists.

Wolves finished the season in 14th place with 46 points, safely out of the relegation zone but not close to serious contention, either. They picked up just two wins in their final 11 matches.

With assorted injuries, Hwang played in 29 out of the club's 38 matches. The 28-year-old has often had trouble staying on the field, and he wasn't able to buck that trend this time around.

Wolves still showed faith in Hwang, as they gave him a new deal in December that will keep him on board until 2028, with an option for an extra year.

jeeho@yna.co.kr
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