Since his FIFA World Cup debut back in 2014, Son Heung-Min has arguably had to shoulder the expectations of an entire nation for over a decade now.
When he burst onto the scene in Bundesliga with Hamburg, the fact that it was still a time when it was rare for a player from South Korea to begin their career in Europe meant that he was immediately surrounded with plenty of hype.
To his credit, Son has more than lived up to all that has been expected of him.
Having made his international bow at the end of 2010, after that year's World Cup, he was relatively experienced by the time the next one came around -- having already earned a move to Bayer Leverkusen and established himself as a rising star in Europe.
He also featured prominently in 2018 and 2022.
But now, at the age of 33 and playing in the MLS with LAFC, Son cannot -- and should not -- be expected to perform at the same level as when he was a standout for Tottenham in the Premier League, winning golden boots and reaching UEFA Champions League finals.
He still possesses an uncanny ability to produce a moment of magic and win a game on his own, but he probably could not do it enough for South Korea to get to wherever they hope to reach at this World Cup.
So if Son could do with some help in the attacking third, is there anyone ready to step up?
The obvious answer is Paris Saint-Germain's Lee Kang-In, who -- for some time now -- has been tipped to be Son's long-term successor as South Korea's talisman, yet perhaps has not exactly reached his full potential.
At 25, Lee is certainly not the finished article but neither is he a precocious talent anymore.
He boasts some fancy credentials with three Ligue 1 titles to his name as well as being a Champions League winner in 2024-25, although it must be noted that he played just 19 minutes for PSG in the knockout round -- and those were in extra-time in the round of 16 against Liverpool.
This season, Lee started almost half of PSG's league games but, conspicuously, all of his ten appearances in the Champions League were from the bench.
For him to be a role player in a team as formidable as PSG still means something, and he has undeniable quality. In the same way Son has, Lee now has to show he can inspire South Korea to victories at the highest level -- not just at the AFC Asian Cup or World Cup qualifiers.
The other easy name to choose is Hwang Hee-Chan, who is perhaps less naturally-gifted than Son and Lee but will never be lacking in endeavour.
Hwang has shown that he is capable of rising to the occasion, as he did at the last World Cup when he scored the last-gasp winner against Portugal that sealed South Korea's progress to the round of 16.
Nonetheless, the 30-year-old is coming off a woeful season where Wolves finished bottom of the Premier League -- with relegation confirmed with five games of the season still to go. Even then, he managed just 19 starts from 31 appearances, scoring only thrice in all competition.
So, if not those just below Son, then maybe South Korea might have to start looking at an even-younger generation.
Stoke City's Bae Jun-Ho and Celtic's Yang Hyun-Jun possess X-factor but neither have shown enough at the highest level to suggest they could emerge as a key player for South Korea. The same goes for Oh Hyeon-Gyu, who is also -- now with Beşiktaş -- gradually establishing himself in Europe, although -- at 25 -- he is the same age as Lee.
Of course, there is every chance any of them could have a breakout World Cup. That was exactly what happened last time out with Cho Gue-Sung. South Korea fans could also be hoping that Cho rises to the occasion on football's biggest stage once more.
The problem is that he hasn't exactly done anything noteworthy since earning a move to Danish outfit Midtjylland following his World Cup breakthrough. There have even been times since 2022 when he was completely omitted from the squad.
South Korea's lack of scoring options was illustrated during qualification when they even handed a debut to 34-year-old midfielder-turned-striker Joo Min-Kyu.
In fairness, Joo warranted his chance given his prolific form in K League 1 at the time. But the fact they turned to someone of his age and based domestically suggested they were really desperate for any short-term solution to help shoulder some of the goalscoring burden if possible.
Maybe the question isn't about who can step up to help Son at this World Cup.
Perhaps it should be who will replace Son once he is no longer leading the South Korea charge, and that could easily need to be addressed as soon as right after this tournament -- with their current captain no guarantee to play at the next World Cup, when he will be 37.
South Korea have undoubtedly been blessed by having a generational talent to call upon for so long now.
They have to start preparing for life without him and, at the very least, give him a hand in 2026.