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Wolves' Hwang dedicates first goal of season to late grandfather

Published: 31 Aug. 2025, 13:59 Updated: 31 Aug. 2025, 19:02

Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Hwang Hee-chan celebrates scoring during a Premier League match against Everton at Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, on Aug. 30. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Hwang Hee-chan scored his first goal of the 2025-26 season in a 3-2 loss to Everton on Saturday and honored his recently deceased grandfather, a 1950-53 Korean War veteran, with his celebration.

Hwang started as a No. 9 in Wolves’ third Premier League fixture of the campaign at Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, and struck an equalizer in the 21st minute after the opening goal from Beto in the seventh minute, converting a cross from Marshall Munetsi from the right flank.

Hwang kissed his wrist, on which his grandfather's and grandmother’s names are tattooed, and pointed to the sky with both hands, paying tribute to veteran Hwang Yong-rak.

The Wolves forward had shared an Instagram post on Tuesday about his grandfather's death.

"My grandfather was always reliable and reassuring ever since I was young,” he said. “He always stayed by my side, protected me and taught me to do what’s right. It felt unbelievable and amazing when he told me about the war he actually fought in, and I was so proud that someone like him was my grandfather.

"What I’ve done as a national team player doesn’t even come close to what he did, but I hope I was able to make him proud in some small way."

With both of his parents working at a major construction firm, Hwang was raised by his grandparents.

He even went straight to his grandparents' house upon returning from the 2022 Qatar World Cup, during which he scored the winner in a 2-1 victory over Portugal to send his country to the round of 16 and gave them his Player of the Match award from the Portugal game.

Hwang’s equalizer on Saturday, however, was not enough to save Wolves from their third straight league loss of the season.

Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Hwang Hee-chan scores during a Premier League match against Everton at Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, on Aug. 30. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Everton went ahead again with a goal from Illiman Ndiaye in the 33rd minute and another from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in the 55th minute. Wolver pulled one back with Rodrigo Gomes finding the back of the net in the 79th minute, but that was it in Wolves’ 3-2 loss.

Wolves have now lost all three opening league matches of the season, having suffered a 4-0 defeat to Manchester City and a 1-0 loss to Bournemouth in the opening two games.

Hwang started this campaign after seeing unimpressive stats last season with two goals and one assist across 25 appearances, which drew speculation that he would move to a different team. But he has featured in the opening three league matches and captained Wolves in a 3-2 win over West Ham in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday.

Hwang will catch the next league action with Wolves on Sept. 13 in a match against Newcastle United.

He will have some time to rest until then, as he did not receive a call-up to the Korean national team this time for Korea’s friendlies against the United States and Mexico. Hwang has amassed 73 caps and made his cap in a 2026 World Cup qualifier against Kuwait on June 10.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY PARK RIN, PAIK JI-HWAN [[email protected]]