Son Heung-min's 4th World Cup ends at the group stage again

If this indeed was the final World Cup for Son Heung-min, the longtime Korean captain would certainly have hoped for a better ending.

The lasting image for the 33-year-old talisman at this tournament may be the one of him sitting on the bench during the first half of what turned out to be a 1-0 loss to South Africa in the final Group A match on Wednesday.

The defeat left Korea in third place in the group with three points from a win and two losses. They still harbored hopes of sneaking into the Round of 32 as one of the eight best third-place teams, but those were dashed Saturday, the last day of group play, when the Taeguk Warriors got pushed out of the top eight.

Son finished with no goals in his two and a half matches at the tournament.

Son came into his fourth World Cup facing persistent questions about his diminishing skills. He had zero goals in 13 MLS appearances for Los Angeles FC prior to the big tournament — less than a year after the former Tottenham Hotspur star took the U.S.-based league by storm with 12 goals in 13 matches in all competitions.

As if to silence his detractors, Son grabbed a brace in Korea's 5-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago in a World Cup tune-up at the end of May. But he failed to duplicate his goal-scoring ways in the matches that mattered.

Son was subbed out in the 69th minute of a 2-1 win over the Czech Republic in Korea's first group match on June 11. He was credited with six shots, but only one was on target. His replacement, Oh Hyeon-gyu, bagged the winner.

Son played even less against Mexico the following week, with manager Hong Myung-bo subbing him out for Oh in the 57th minute.

Then, against South Africa last Wednesday, with a knockout berth at stake, Hong kept his captain out of the starting lineup. Son had started his first 12 World Cup matches, dating back to 2014, but watched for 45 minutes as Korea failed to solve the South African defense.

Hong explained that he wanted a fresh version of Son in the second half against a tired South African defense. Son came on right at the restart but couldn't prevent the loss that would send his team packing.

Son remains tied for the all-time Korean lead in World Cup goals with three. Two former players, Ahn Jung-hwan and Park Ji-sung, also have three apiece. Son is also tied with three former players, including Hong, for the most World Cup tournament appearances by a Korean player at four.

It remains unclear if Son will get another chance to move into the lead in both categories.

Addressing speculation about his national team future during a press conference before the match against the Czech Republic, Son said, "I have never once said this is my last World Cup. The most important thing is to do my job. People can say whatever they want, and I will choose my path wisely."

In 2014, Korea, also managed by Hong then, had a draw and two losses to finish last in their group. Four years later, Son scored in a stunning 2-0 upset of reigning champions Germany in the final group match, but it still wasn't enough to send Korea to the knockouts.

In 2022, Son assisted Hwang Hee-chan's last-gasp goal that clinched a 2-1 win over Portugal in their group stage finale as the Warriors qualified for the last 16 in dramatic fashion.

Son was at the peak of his powers then, just months removed from becoming the first Asian player to win the Premier League Golden Boot. But Korea were hammered by Brazil 4-1, conceding all four goals in the first half.

The group stage elimination this summer is another wasted opportunity for Korea with one of their greatest players ever in tow.

Son is the most capped male player for Korea with 147 and the country's second leading scorer with 56, two behind the legend Cha Bum-kun.

Yonhap