Tottenham favourite confirms he has asked to leave the club after transfer approach

Tottenham Hotspur legend Heung-min Son has announced he is going to leave the club after a summer of consideration. The 33-year-old signed a new one-year contract extension at the end of last season, but it looks as though that contract will only be enough to keep him at the club for the duration of pre-season.

It emerged earlier this summer that MLS side LAFC had approached Son over a possible move to the States, and Spurs boss Frank made it clear that the South Korean veteran had earned the right to decide his own future after 333 league appearances for the club, scoring 127 goals.

Frank said in July: “For me, the decision should be Son’s. If he wants to stay after 10 years at the club and see out his contract, then he’s earned that right, but if he wants to make a move, then that avenue needs to be explored.”

Since then, Son has indeed been considering his future, and after touching down in his home country, South Korea, the forward has confirmed that he will leave the club this summer, bringing to a close a legendary spell with the club that has spanned a decade.

He confirmed: “Before we start the press conference, I wanted to say I have decided to leave the Club this summer. Respectfully the club is helping me with this decision. It was the most difficult decision I have made in my career. Such amazing memories. It was so hard to make the decision.

"I need a new environment to push myself. I need a little bit of change - 10 years is a long time. I came to north London as a kid, 23 years old, such a young age. I leave this club as a grown man, a very proud man. I want to say thank you to all the Spurs fans for giving me so much love. I hope the goodbye is also good timing and this is the right time to make that decision. I hope everyone can accept that and respect that."

In response, Frank added: “For me, personally, I would have loved to have worked with this fantastic person and player. He is a true Spurs legend in every aspect, one of the greatest players to play in the Premier League. It is never easy to find the perfect timing and me coming in from the side, it makes it a bit easier to end on a high.”

Tottenham already had a need to sign another attacker this summer, and they now find themselves needing another to fill the space that will be left by Son. Those will be big boots to fill, and the clock is ticking for Frank as he looks to fill out his squad by the time the season starts in just a couple of weeks.

Spurs have made a slow start to the summer transfer window. While they have made a couple of loan deals permanent, they have had to settle for only the Mohammed Kudus signing up to this point.

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