Son Heung-min shines in Los Angeles FC debut
Son was brought down for a penalty in the 77th minute that Denis Bouanga converted to clinch a draw in the 81st minute -- VAR confirming the spot-kick after the referee had allowed play to continue.
"It was a great pass. Obviously, it was definitely contact and it was definitely a penalty, I have no doubt about it," said Son, who was sent sprawling by Carlos Teran after racing on to a through ball with the goal in his sights.
"A bit disappointed not getting three points, but I think everybody put in a lot of effort. (I'm) happy I made my debut and I hope the goals come soon."
The former Tottenham captain also had a string of shots on goal, including one blocked in second-half injury time.
Son signed with LAFC on Wednesday for a reported MLS record $26 million after a decade with Premier League club Spurs, where he became a household name.
The South Korea captain had announced the previous on Saturday in his homeland that he would be leaving the north London club and departed as Tottenham's fifth-highest goalscorer of all time with 173 goals in 454 appearances.
Son will not get a chance to play in front of home fans in Los Angeles until August 31, when Western Conference leaders San Diego will be the visitors.
But around the Fire's SeatGeek Stadium, there were a lot of fans wearing his jerseys, waving South Korean flags and holding up signs welcoming Son to MLS.
Cheers greeted his entry in place of David Martinez in the 61st minute with the teams level at 1-1.
Jonathan Bamba put Chicago 2-1 ahead in the 70th minute and they were pressing again when Brian Gutierrez's shot bounced off the post and LAFC seized the rebound.
Nathan Ordaz played the ball forward for Son to race away. He had a first MLS goal in his sights when he was brought down.
The penalty allowed LAFC to level for a second time.
Carlos Teran had opened the scoring for the Fire in the 11th minute with a header from a corner.
Eight minutes later Ryan Hollingshead nodded in to make it 1-1.
Son had said at his introductory press conference — attended by luminaries including Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass — that he felt fighting fit and wanted to get on the pitch "as soon as possible."
He will have his next chance when LAFC, who moved up a spot to fifth in the Western Conference, visit the New England Revolution next Saturday.
"It was a decent 30 minutes in my legs, so, yeah, getting ready for next week," Son said.
"So we'll see how I progress with the training sessions and with the players and we'll see (if) next week I can start the game and make a big impact."
— AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Times of Oman
a day ago
- Times of Oman
Premier League "middle-class" looking for surprises and upsets
LONDON: Crystal Palace's thrilling win on penalties against Liverpool in the Community Shield at Wembley on Sunday showed there is still room for surprises in an English top-flight and the ability of the so-called 'middle-class' to spring surprises will be a key factor in the coming season. Although the Premier League title race does look as if it has four main candidates (Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea), Palace's win shows upsets can always happen. It seems strange to consider Manchester United and Tottenham the "middle-class", but their performances last season in the Premier League were dreadful, with United finishing 15th and Tottenham an embarrassing 17th. Although neither was in danger of relegation with the bottom three a long way adrift long before the end of the season, Spurs' 38 points from 38 matches, and Manchester United's 42 points leave them a world behind Liverpool's 84 points for the campaign. Tottenham brought in Brentford coach Thomas Frank to replace Ange Postecoglou, made Mathys Tel's loan move permanent and has signed Mohammed Kudos from West Ham and Joao Palhinha on loan from Bayern Munich in what looks like a smart move. Austrian international Kevin Danso should strengthen central defense, while Kota Takai is also an interesting prospect, although perhaps one for the future. Tottenham has said goodbye to Son Heung-min as he moves to LA, while James Maddison's knee injury is a big setback for Tottenham with the aim of a top-six finishm. Manchester United has no European commitments, meaning Ruben Amorim's side can focus on the league. The jury is still out on the Portuguese coach, but the club has given him its back in terms of arrivals and departures, adding considerable firepower in Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko, while shipping out Marcus Rashford and others, such as Antonio Garnacho, also likely to leave. Amorim could argue last season that he wasn't working with a squad of his making, but he has no excuses now and needs his team to perform from the start. Nottingham Forest was last season's surprise package under Nuno Espiritu Santo and will be happy to have fended off Tottenham's interest in Morgan Gibbs-White, with Dan Ndoye in to replace Anthony Elanga. Playing in Europe may stretch Forest's squad, but under Nuno, they won't give much away, even though another top-seven finish looks difficult. Crystal Palace has already shown its giant-killing abilities under coach Oliver Glasner, although uncertainly over which European competition it will play next season has limited summer signings to just Walter Benitez and Borna Sosa. The good news is that so far, Palace has held on to key players, Marc Guehi and Eze Eberechi, although the rest of the month could see more movement in the transfer market. Everton begins life in its new Everton Stadium, which has created a buzz around the club, although coach David Moyes has indicated he wants more action in the transfer market, with activity speeding up in recent days with the arrival of midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and striker Thierno Barry, who impressed last season at Villarreal. Expect Moyes' side to be solid if unspectacular. Brighton maintained its reputation for entertaining football last season under young coach Fabian Hurzeler and although the club has lost Joao Pedro to Chelsea, youngster Tom Watson looked good at Sunderland last season, while the signing of teenager Charalampos Kostoulas, could be another example of Brighton moving early to sign a player who will earn it big money in the future. Bournemouth also impressed last season under Andoni Iraola and although the Basque has money to spend after selling defenders Milos Kerkez to Liverpool and Dean Huijsen to Real Madrid, it has also left him a rebuilding job to strengthen the back four and replace Kerkez's crosses from the left. ■
Observer
2 days ago
- Observer
Crystal Palace win Community Shield on penalties
London: Crystal Palace twice came from behind to stun a new-look Liverpool and win the Community Shield for the first time on penalties after a 2-2 draw at Wembley on Sunday. New signings Hugo Ekitike and Jeremie Frimpong scored for the Premier League champions, but Palace responded through Jean-Philippe Mateta and Ismaila Sarr before winning an error-strewn shootout 3-2. Mohamed Salah blazed over from the spot, while Alexis Mac Allister and Harvey Elliott were denied by an inspired Dean Henderson as Palace built on winning their first ever major trophy by beating Manchester City in May's FA Cup final. The traditional curtain-raiser to the English football season was given extra significance after a summer marked by tragedy for Liverpool. Forward Diogo Jota was killed in a car accident alongside his brother Andre Silva. Reds legend Ian Rush and Palace chairman Steve Parish laid wreaths on the side of the pitch before kick-off, while the Liverpool end was awash with banners and flags paying tribute to the Portuguese international. A minute's silence, however, had to be cut short due to disturbances in the crowd. Jota's death has dampened the excitement over Liverpool's transfer spending spree to build on a squad that romped to a record-equalling 20th league title last season. All four of their new signings at a cost of £260 million ($350 million) — Ekitike, Florian Wirtz, Frimpong and Milos Kerkez — started. Ekitike's role this season could depend on whether Liverpool are successful in their pursuit of Newcastle striker Alexander Isak. But the Frenchman — signed from Eintracht Frankfurt last month for an initial £69 million — did his case to be Slot's preferred number nine no harm at all. Wirtz also bagged his first assist for the Reds when Ekitike spun onto the German's pass and fired into the far corner just four minutes. Palace were making their first ever appearance in the fixture but the Eagles again showed their ability to match one of the Premier League's giants over 90 minutes. Mateta missed a glorious chance to level when he failed to beat Alisson Becker when one-on-one. - Liverpool unbalanced - But from the rebound Sarr charged into the box and was tripped by an out-of-sorts Virgil van Dijk. Mateta coolly sent Alisson the wrong way from the penalty spot to equalise. Liverpool's players were sporting a "Forever 20" emblem, referencing Jota's now-retired shirt number, that they will wear all season. The Liverpool fans had risen to chant Jota's name as the game entered the 20th minute when their side retook the lead. Frimpong's chipped cross caught out Henderson and flew into the far corner. Ekitike wasted a great chance for his second early in the second half from another Wirtz pass, as this time he fired over. However, Slot's new-look side is still to find the right balance between attack and defence as has been evidenced during pre-season. Palace were a constant threat with balls in behind the Reds' defence and levelled again 13 minutes from time. Sarr sped onto Adam Wharton's through ball and calmly slotted past Alisson for his fourth goal in seven games against Liverpool. Liverpool also survived a VAR review for a penalty against Mac Allister for handball before the match went to a shootout without extra time. Youngster Justin Devenny was the unlikely hero as he blasted the winning spot-kick high past Alisson, showing Salah, Mac Allister and Elliott how it is done. — AFP
Observer
3 days ago
- Observer
Liverpool's Uruguay striker Nunez joins Al Hilal
Liverpool: Liverpool's Uruguay forward Darwin Nunez has joined Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal from the Premier League champions on a three-year deal, both clubs said on Saturday. Financial details of the transfer were not disclosed but British media reported that the Saudis paid 53 million euros ($61.69 million) plus add-ons that could take the final price tag up to 56.6 million pounds for the 26-year-old. "Al Hilal Club Company is pleased to announce the signing of Uruguayan striker Darwin Nunez from Liverpool FC on a three-year contract," the Saudi club said on their website. "Nunez has just joined the squad during the current pre-season training camp in Germany," Al Hilal added. Nunez joined Liverpool in June 2022 from Benfica for an initial fee of 75 million euros but struggled for consistency, with 40 goals and 26 assists in 143 games in all competitions. The striker found himself on the fringes of the first team during Liverpool's title-winning campaign last season, starting only eight league matches and netting five times. His departure will help finance Liverpool's outlay of almost 300 million pounds so far for the 2025-26 season. They have already signed Germany playmaker Florian Wirtz for a club-record fee of up to 116 million pounds and French forward Hugo Ekitike for 69 million plus add-ons. Al Hilal, under former Inter Milan manager Simone Inzaghi, became the first Asian club to defeat a Premier League side in an official match when they beat Manchester City at the Club World Cup last month. Inzaghi's new side is aiming to secure a record-extending 20th league title this season, having finished second in the Saudi Pro League last term. Their other high-profile signing of the transfer window was Theo Hernandez from AC Milan. — Reuters
