Son wins gold to avoid military service

Tottenham Hotspur forward Son Heung-min is set to be spared almost two years of military service after leading South Korea to Asian Games gold on Saturday.

The defending champions beat Japan 2-1 after extra time in steamy Cibinong, West Java as Lee Seung-woo and Hwang Hee-chan scored the goals that will allow 26-year-old Son to see out his new five-year deal with Spurs.

A late header from Ayase Ueda gave South Korea an almighty fright, but they saw out a nervous last few moments to win a record fifth Asian Games title.

Korean captain Son, substituted in the dying seconds to buy precious time, sprinted from the bench to embrace goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo, sobbing tears of joy as they rolled on the turf together.

The Koreans dominated the final but wasted several decent opportunities before substitute Lee broke the deadlock by smashing a left-foot shot into the roof of the net three minutes into extra time.

Son delivered a free kick for Hwang to ram home a towering header eight minutes later, before Ueda’s goal triggered late drama.

South Korea could have been three goals up by halftime, with Lee Jin-hyun blazing just over from distance and Son bundled over in the box for what replays suggested was a clear penalty.

Source: Agencies