SEOUL, May 23 (Bernama-Yonhap) -- Whenever he thinks about playing at a FIFA World Cup, Son Heung-min becomes a kid again -- a boy that once dreamed of representing South Korea at football's biggest tournament, .
Now 33, Son will lead South Korea at his fourth career World Cup next month in Mexico. He was named to head coach Hong Myung-bo's 26-man squad in Seoul last Saturday and was introduced as captain.
Son doesn't know if it will be his World Cup swan song, but he does know he will enjoy the experience.
"It doesn't matter how many World Cups you've played. It's like a dream. I feel like I am a little child looking forward to representing this amazing country," Yonhap News Agency reported Son told reporters in English in a media availability for Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles on Friday, two days before facing Seattle Sounders.
It will be Son's final Major League Soccer (MLS) match before joining the South Korean national team in their training camp in Salt Lake City.
"It takes a lot of responsibility, but it's a huge honour for me," Son continued. "I just want to have fun and make this tournament like a festival. Everybody has been working for four years for this amazing tournament. We want to have fun and have great results."
Asked if he found it difficult not to look ahead to South Korea's first World Cup match against Czechia on June 11 in Mexico, Son shook his head and said: "I never think about the future. I always think day by day, game by game."
"The most important game is on Sunday," he added. "Just want to make sure we get a great result before I go to the World Cup with a great feeling."
Responding to Korean questions, Son said his passion for representing the country at the World Cup has never changed and he wants to take the same mindset into the upcoming tournament.
"I want to give everything I have on and off the field. It will help the team move in the direction that we all want," Son said. "And the World Cup is supposed to be a festival, and I want to create a culture where fans will be able to enjoy it."
-- BERNAMA-YONHAP
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