Son Heung-min's 'unprecedented decline' in '3 months before the World Cup' and 'why on earth' in a 6.1 rating... '0 goals in 8 consecutive games' seriously poor

*This content was translated by AI.

Son Heung-min (34, Los Angeles FC) fell into a slump with no end in sight. He sought to rebound by returning to his original position as a striker, but bowed his head, leaving a humiliating indicator of zero effective shots.

LAFC drew 0-0 away against Austin FC in the fifth round of the 2026 U.S. Major League Soccer (MLS) at 9:45 a.m. on the 22nd (Korea Standard Time) at Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas. LAFC, which had won four consecutive games since the opening, had to be satisfied to add one more point after an empty space on the day.

In the end, Son Heung-min failed to report a regular league strikeout this season. He has been scoreless for eight consecutive games. After the game, the statistics media "Foot Mob" criticized Son Heung-min, who played full season in the 90th minute, with a 6.1 rating.

The detailed indicators are even more disastrous. Son Heung-min tried to shoot three times on the day, but all of them were blocked by the opponent's defense, and one long-range shot was far off the goal. The result was 0 valid shots. Throughout the game, there were only 24 ball touches, and the number of times the ball was lost to the opponent reached three times.

In fact, Son Heung-min was not given a chance to score at all. Son Heung-min's expected scoring value (xG) remained at 0.21. Unlike the fact that he has found a way out through playmaking despite the silence of scoring, even key passes failed to exert influence on this day, with only one time.

On the same day, coach Mark dos Santos made a major change in how to use Son Heung-min. Son Heung-min, who had been mainly used as an offensive midfielder behind the striker, was finally forward-deployed as a central striker in a 4-3-3 formation. Dnie Vuanga, who has shown excellent breathing since last season, is in charge of the left wing and David Martinez is in charge of the right wing. Mark Delgado, Timothy Tillman and Mathieu Schniere formed the midfield. Eddie Segura, Nkosi Tafari, Ryan Porteous and Serhiy Palencia were in charge of the four-back, while Hugo Lloris defended the goal.

However, Son Heung-min's return to the front line did not work. In the first half, LAFC was taken by Austin. Central striker Son Heung-min rarely had a chance near the box, and two mid-range shots from outside the penalty box were blocked by the defender.

It increased possession in the second half, but Austin's close defense was solid. Son Heung-min struggled with isolation until the middle of the second half, with only 10 ball touches. As the frustrating trend continued, coach dos Santos tried to make changes in the 28th minute of the second half by excluding Tillman and Martinez and putting in Amin Boudry and Tyler Boyd.

In the 32nd minute of the second half, Son Heung-min quickly hit the front and sought an opportunity, but an error occurred in which Budri's pass was connected briefly. In the end, Son Heung-min lost the ball due to the opponent's defense's intensive checks. He didn't even follow the goal luck. Delgado's mid-range shot hit the crossbar in the 40th minute of the second half.

In the 41st minute, Son Heung-min had a decisive opportunity. He penetrated the gate with a bold dribble breakthrough and faced a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper, but the last shot was caught in the final defense's tackle.

The only threatening attack was Buanga's one effective shot in extra time in the second half. LAFC was rather close to allowing a goal each time, but thanks to goalkeeper Lloris' good defense, it overcame the crisis.

In the end, LAFC left a humiliating record of only one effective shot until the final whistle.

Son Heung-min has fallen into an unprecedented decline in field goal silence in nine consecutive official games this season. So far, only one penalty goal against Real Spain (Honduras) has been scored.

Obviously, Son Heung-min showed off his destructive power of nearly one goal per game with 12 goals and three assists in 13 games under former coach Steven Cheruntholo last season. However, he remained silent in the match against Austin this time, continuing his unusual record of zero field goals in nine games. Of course, the 2026 FIFA North-China World Cup is only three months away.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.