Son Heung Min Goes Viral For Praising Palestinian Soccer Team After 1-1 Draw

He looked visibly moved.
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Serah S. Cherrie
Serah S. Cherrie

South Korea’s national soccer captain, Son Heung Min, is going viral for his heartfelt praise for the Palestinian team after the two teams went up against one another in Amman on Tuesday, November 19, in the third phase of Asia’s World Cup preliminaries.

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Son Heung Min | Yonhap

Player Zaid Qunbar scored the first goal of the match, giving the Palestinian team an early lead. Son Heung Min scored in the 16th minute to even the score. The match ended in a 1-1 draw.

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Zaid Al Qunbar | Reuters

This draw ended South Korea’s winning streak in the qualifying round after four straight wins, but the team is still on track to progress to the World Cup finals with a three-point lead over second-place Iraq in Group B.

After Tuesday’s match, Son Heung Min talked to the press about the results and took the opportunity to praise the Palestinian team, which has been representing its country in the midst of Israeli aggressions that have claimed at least 180,000 lives (projected by the Lancet) in the Gaza Strip.

Son praised the Palestinian team’s performance, saying, “I’d like to applaud them.” The South Korean captain acknowledged the opponent team’s resilience and even suggested that his own team could learn from them.

I think they were well prepared despite being in such a difficult situation, and they executed their plans really well. I think that’s something we can learn from them. I am disappointed that we didn’t win and hopefully, we will play better next year.

— Son Heung Min

The clip of Son Heung Min’s gracious remarks about the Palestinian team has gone viral on X (formerly Twitter), with netizens showering him with praise. Some even took the opportunity to point out the two countries’ shared history.

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