Son Heung-min wears face mask during training for World Cup 2022

Son Heung-min will be leaving no stone unturned as he aims to be ready for South Korea’s World Cup opener.

South Korea’s captain wore a face mask as he trained with his teammates on Saturday, defying a nasty facial injury.

Son underwent surgery after suffering a fracture around his left eye while playing for Tottenham in the Champions League earlier this month.

The 30-year-old trained on Friday and Saturday while wearing a black face mask. Son was seen readjusting the mask several times as he went through drills with the rest of the South Korea squad in Qatar.

South Korea play their opening match against Uruguay on November 24.

Former captain Koo Ja-cheol was confident about Son’s chances of playing, stating: “Everybody knows about him, he always plays with passion, he’s really a passionate guy, he never wants to stop.

“I think he will push himself – as far as I know him – so I expect he will start. When someone has an injury like Sonny right now, even one of the biggest players can be scared, but it cannot stop him, as I know him.”

Earlier, manager Paulo Bento admitted a “final decision” will be made over Son’s involvement in the World Cup. Bento named a 27th player, forward Oh Hyeon-gyu, who will train with the team in Qatar and could replace Son if he does not make the cut.

Updated: November 19, 2022, 9:50 AM