Son Heung-min has said West Ham United fans will know why he gave them the shushing gesture after scoring against their team for Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday night.
The South Korean was racially abused by a West Ham supporter in November, after he wound down his car window to pose for a picture with another fan. In a video that was uploaded to social media, the man – who is off camera – asks Son if he can get him a copy of the new Planet of the Apes film. “DVDs. You do DVDs. Good copies,” the man adds, before identifying himself as a West Ham supporter.
The reference to selling DVDs is known to be a racist term when aimed at Asian footballers and, after the clip was circulated, West Ham released a statement in which they said they “unreservedly condemn the actions of the individual in this video”. Tottenham issued a statement along similar lines.
Son’s long-range screamer on 84 minutes earned Tottenham a 1-1 draw in a rather drab encounter at Wembley and it went in at the end where the West Ham fans were seated. Son put his finger to his lips as he celebrated. “It was nothing special, I don’t want to talk about it,” Son said. “I think they knew why I did it and that’s it.”
It was Son’s 10th goal of the season in all competitions and his 31st for the club since the start of last term. “I’m living my dream but I can’t believe it,” he said.
“I’m playing Premier League but I’m still very hungry. I’m looking up. I want to be a top player. I think I can still play better. I have a good chance to play even better than this.”