Why there is no better time for Son Heung-min to learn to be a marine

On the face of it, Son Heung-min undertaking military service so soon after recovering from a fractured arm seemed like a curious decision.

Some wondered whether a 30-kilometre march, exposure to tear gas and learning to fire a gun was the ideal next step after an injury that required surgery less than two months ago.

In reality though, Son’s basic military training may have come at a perfect time. The normally jam-packed football schedule means that finding a window of opportunity to do the training is extremely difficult, whereas now players have an unusual amount of time on their hands. With many players starting to feel restless, some may even envy Son having a clear structure for the weeks ahead.

It is also the case, according to some who have completed the training that, behind closed doors, luminaries like Son can in practice be given a less gruelling stint — should it be necessary. Son is not one to take a back seat but he is not likely to be pushed beyond his physical limits — especially as he will be joined on the short training programme by some who have medical exemptions from completing the full service.

Such is Son’s diligence, however, there is an expectation that on top of his military exercises, he will also be working to maintain his core fitness levels (which is all Premier League footballers can do at this moment while they await news of the season’s resumption). Son is currently quarantined in South Korea but has been working on a personalised fitness programme and is in regular contact with the Tottenham medical staff. He is known for his exceptional dedication when it comes to fitness work.

It is part of the reason why he was able to be involved in more than 75 games from May 25, 2018 to June 13, 2019 for club and country. Up until his recent surgery Son had not missed a Premier League game through injury since November 2015.

“He’s an extremely fit guy anyway so naturally he’ll come back and attain those fitness levels pretty quickly,” analyst Ben Dinnery, of Premier Injuries, tells The Athletic. “His time in the military may even turn out to be quite a good thing.” And should Son have any physical concerns while on duty, there will be medical doctors on hand to assist.

That Son is in Korea at all for his training is a result of the country’s compulsory male conscription programme — they are technically still at war with North Korea.

That he is only doing three weeks of basic training (plus he must complete 544 hours of voluntary service) compared to the 21-month version that is normally mandatory for South Korean nationals is down to the gold medal he won at the Asian Games in 2018. Winning the World Cup, a gold medal at the Asian Games or any medal at the Olympics grants you an exemption from full service.

It was winning a bronze medal at London 2012 that allowed former Newcastle and Swansea midfielder Ki Sung-yueng to undertake a shorter version of the training four years ago. Ex-Manchester United winger Park Ji-sung meanwhile was granted the same exemption after South Korea reached the semi-final of the 2002 World Cup (nowadays only winning the competition provides an exemption).

The Asian Games win was a major boost for Son and Tottenham, as able-bodied South Korean men are required to commence the full service by the time they are 28 (Son turns 28 in July). It was well known that he was desperate to avoid that fate — hence him being selected as one of the few senior players in what was primarily an under-23 competition that was way below his level.

Most Koreans complete the service in their early twenties, and skipping it is not an option. Agitating for an exemption without the Asian Games win would have been unthinkable for Son, who is one of the country’s main national treasures alongside K-pop group BTS and the Oscar-winning director of “Parasite” Bong Joon-ho. Former Arsenal striker Park Chu-young managed to delay his national service on a technicality in 2012 but such was the public outcry he returned home to apologise and his reputation never fully recovered.

That said, The Athletic understands that having Son’s sort of profile does make an altered experience during the training programme possible. According to one source who served with a South Korean footballer, this might mean being given less demanding tasks or skipping certain activities.

None of which is to say that Son will expect to have a diluted few weeks or that what he is about to embark on will be straightforward when he begins his service on the island of Jeju on April 20.

While it is only training, rather than the full service that can mean front-line service patrolling the demilitarised zone, Son will be sharing a room with up to 15 others and will have minimal contact with the outside world.

Everything will be done in groups — he won’t even be allowed to head to the men’s room on his own. Son will also need to shave his head beforehand — not doing so will see him shaved at the camp.

Broadly, his three weeks of training with the marines (the fact he is with the marines rather than army means his training is three weeks instead of four) will be broken down as follows: The first week focuses on mental training, the second week will train him basics like how units should walk, run and move together, how to operate a gun, and the third week will centre on the marches, the longest of which will be 30 kilometres with a 25kg bag and a gun weighing around 10kg.

The trainees are also exposed to tear gas without their masks on to test their durability and resilience. Previously they were made to sing in order to force them to open their mouths and add extra intensity to the operation, but the Korean military have been moving away from this exercise.

As for COVID-19 concerns, Son and his colleagues will have their temperatures checked regularly and will be asked to maintain distance during their training. In general, South Korea has been praised for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic, and on Jeju there have been only 12 reported cases and no deaths.

While in the military, Son will get a huge amount of attention from his colleagues given his phenomenal level of celebrity in Korea. There is a great deal of excitement in the country about one of their biggest stars being home, and a number of memes depicting Son in combat have been doing the rounds on social media.

As with Tottenham, the main hope among most of Son’s countrymen is that he gets through the exercise unscathed — especially given his recent arm injury. There is also a view among many Koreans that serving in the military is part of “becoming a true man”.

Son is only doing the training but will likely learn a lot from the experience. It will certainly be in stark contrast to the video-training sessions his team-mates will be doing at the same time from the comfort of their own luxury homes.

And once his training concludes in early May, Son will return to London. With football’s return date still in doubt, and Spurs chairman Daniel Levy initially fearing that it may not be until the end of the year or beyond, Son should have plenty of time to recover from his exertions.

(Photo: Shaun Botterill via Getty Images)