“We’re looking at one of the best players in the history of the Premier League. What a player.” (Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher)
“Son Heung-min fills the goal void left by Kane’s departure. He’s been fantastic at the center of the team’s attack.” (BBC)
It was a performance that got everyone talking. Son Heung-min, 31, scored a goal and provided an assist in Tottenham’s 2-0 home win over Fulham in the ninth round of the 2023-2024 English Premier League (EPL) at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England, on Thursday. Son, who started as a frontline striker, opened the scoring in the 36th minute when he collected a ball from Ricardo (26-Brazil) and cut in from the right just outside the penalty box, beating a defender with his ‘trademark’ right-footed curling kick. Nine minutes into the second half, he collected the ball just outside the penalty box and slid it to James Maddison (27-England), who was surging forward from the left. Maddison calmly finished with his right foot to complete the assist. Spurs, unbeaten in nine games (7 wins, 2 draws, 23 points), moved back into first place in the league, ahead of Manchester City (7 wins, 2 draws, 21 points). Fulham is 13th (W2 D4 L11). Son Heung-min was named the EPL’s Man of the Match (MOM). He received 59% of the vote. This is his third MOM of the season.
Son has seven goals (one assist) this season, tied for second on the team with Liverpool’s Muhammad Salah (31-Egypt). He was criticized for his lackluster form last season with 10 goals and six assists in 36 games, but he has established himself as a striker under new head coach Ange Postecoglou (58-Australia), who plays attacking football, and has lived up to expectations with crucial goals. There are fewer and fewer people who miss England striker Harry Kane (30-Bayern Munich), who left the team.
Locally, the praise is muted. Many soccer commentators, including Carragher, have hailed him as “a player who will go down in history.” Postecoglou, who has publicly praised him on several occasions, says: “I don’t need to say more. He’s unbelievable as a human being,” he said. Teammate Maddison emphasized, “I don’t say this often, but Son Heung-min is world class.” “He always gives his time to the people around him,” Madison said before the game. He’s the kind of person you want to hug every morning when you see his face.” Their bromance (a unique friendship between men) is already well known in the UK, where the phrase “Madison + Heung-min Son” is popular. Maddison assisted on both of Son’s goals in the 2-2 draw against Arsenal in the sixth round. They’re a perfect match on and off the field.
“We still have a lot of games left, so we have to be humble and prepare for the next game,” Son said after the win. Tottenham will host Crystal Palace on Nov. 28 in the 10th round of the league.
The goal gave Son his 110th career EPL goal, moving him into a tie for 26th place on the all-time list with Ryan Giggs (50, Wales-Retired), who has 109. He achieved this in 2015, in his ninth year in a Tottenham shirt (277 games). It has been said in English soccer that he “could be looking at 25 goals this season”. He also has 50 home goals, which ranks third on the list of most goals scored in a 토토사이트 single stadium. Tottenham Hotspur Stadium opened in April 2019. Salah has scored 65 goals at Liverpool’s home Anfield, while Kane has scored 62 at Tottenham.
Tottenham’s 23 points are the most in the first nine games in EPL history. Gus Hiddink (77, Netherlands), who took over at Chelsea after coaching the South Korean national team, had 22 points in the first nine games of the 2008-2009 season. Some observers are cautiously optimistic that Spurs can accomplish the feat of winning their first EPL title. However, Postecoglou tempered the euphoria by saying, “The second half was really disappointing, we wasted our chances.”