Hwang scores on return from injury as opposing fan arrested for alleged racism

Hwang Hee-chan returned from injury with a goal against Crystal Palace on Sunday, briefly tying things up for Wolverhampton Wanderers in what would eventually turn out to be a 3-2 loss on the road.

Wolverhampton Wanderers' Hwang Hee-chan celebrates scoring during a game against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park in London on Sunday. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Hwang Hee-chan returned from injury with a goal against Crystal Palace on Sunday, briefly tying things up for Wolverhampton Wanderers in what would eventually turn out to be a 3-2 loss on the road.

Hwang came on in the 60th minute of Sunday’s Premier League clash, returning after leaving the previous week’s game with a suspected hamstring injury. He scored five minutes later, knocking in the equalizer less than 10 minutes after Palace scored the opening goal at Selhurst Park in south London.

The home side rebounded quickly, scoring again in the 78th minute and 84th minute to take a 3-1 lead, with Matheus Cunha’s stoppage time goal proving too little, too late to salvage a point for Wolves.

The 3-2 loss is a disappointing result for Wolves, who now sit in 15th place with just a single win after four games, but a good sign for Hwang, who ended up just missing one Carabao Cup game before returning with an impact.

Hamstring injuries are a major area of concern for Hwang, who missed a month earlier this year and was sidelined for nearly 50 days at the end of 2021 with the same issue.

Since joining Wolves in 2021, Hwang has missed a total of 17 games for both Wolves and the Korean team — 16 of those games were missed due to hamstring injuries. A hamstring injury nearly took him out of the 2022 Qatar World Cup, although the fiery midfielder known as The Bull eventually returned in the final group stage game to score the crucial goal that carried Korea through to the knockout stage.

Hwang being back in action is also good news for the Korean team, who started training Monday in England ahead of two friendlies during the international break — against Wales on Thursday and Saudi Arabia on Sept. 12.

Sunday’s game was overshadowed by alleged racist abuse from at least one Crystal Palace fan aimed at a Wolves player.

Both Palace and Wolves have confirmed the incident in separate statements, with the home side stating that the fan had been identified, removed from the stadium and arrested. Neither club has named the player that was subject to the abuse, but some reports suggest it could have been Hwang.

“We are very disappointed to report that one of our players was the target of discriminatory abuse by an opposing fan during today’s game with Crystal Palace,” Wolves said in a statement.

“We are offering our full support to the player involved and have provided a formal statement to the Metropolitan Police.

“Racism or discrimination in any form is completely unacceptable and should never be left unchallenged.”

Palace provided the same information, adding that: “The Met Police, The Premier League and matchday officials were informed and our security team immediately removed the individual from the stadium, where he was detained and arrested. He is now subject to a police investigation. We will of course support that investigation and also conduct our own.”

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]