'Captain' Son Heung-min (Tottenham) is lonely.
Even Alan Shearer joined the criticism procession. Shearer insisted in an interview with Betfair that `Son Heung-min should take more responsibility.' He said "Dominic Solanke has yet to show anything due to injury. He came out in the first game, missed the next two, played against Arsenal again, but there is no doubt he is making mistakes in the attacking positionBrennan Johnson must improve. Son Heung-min is also capable. Timo Werner is the same when he comes out." Then "That's what they need to improve. Had one or two chances in the first half. Dejan Kulusevski had his chance, and David Raya blocked. There was no hope in the second half. The performance was really not good. There was no real quality," he stressed.
Shearer is one of the famous 'Sonpa'. It was a legend who did not spare praise for Son Heung-min. Whenever he had the chance, he praised his decision-making ability and often selected him for Lee Ju's team. However, even Shearer cited Son Heung-min as the cause of Tottenham's recent slump.
It's not just Shearer. British Sky Sports criticized Tottenham's performance with the title of "'Son Heung-min's struggle, set-piece is still weak, and coach Angie Postecoglou's agony continues' Tottenham fell to 13th place in the league on Super Sunday, losing 0-1 at home to their North London rivals Arsenal. The boos at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium were not overwhelming, but they sounded clear. Arsenal lost three games in a row at home, inflicting a crushing defeat on the fans. Coach Postecoglou pointed out that Tottenham's performance in the first four games of the season was worth more than four points, but it was a long time ago that he was sluggish against Arsenal and failed to score a chance.
Sky Sports found the reason for this slump in the slump of major players such as Son Heung-min. Son Heung-min and other main players are struggling. When he left the stadium after the match against Arsenal where captain Son Heung-min failed to score a shot, fans could hear Postecoglou questioning his inability to leave Son out. Son scored two goals during his 4-0 win over Everton at home. However, this game was only one of the three games Son Heung-min scored in 13 league games since late March. Figures also compared Son's slump around April this year. By April, he had 2.78 shots, 1.29 effective shots, an average of 0.62 goals, 0.33 assists, and 7.01 touches per game in the opponent's box, but after April, he had only 1.90 shots and 0.95 effective shots, and his average score was 0.32 goals, 0.16 assists, and the number of ball touches in the opponent's box was reduced to 6.5 times.
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| Source=Sky Sports |
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Former coach Tim Sherwood, who was with Son Heung-min, also pointed out Son's performance. He appeared in the `Premier League Productions" game against Arsenal, which was one of Son's worst games. He is a goalscorer who has scored a lot in the North London derby, but this was not his day." Sherwood is a shocking criticism, as he was one of the people who gave Son many favorable comments and praised him.
This season, voices pointing out Son Heung-min's play are increasing. After the 0-1 defeat of Arsenal on the 15th (Korea time), the level of the game increased further. Tottenham was expected to have an edge against Arsenal, whose midfield collapsed due to Martin Odegaard's injury and Declan Rice's disciplinary action, but only the ball possession was high and collapsed after a frustrating game.
Son Heung-min, who stepped up to the left wing, made an altruistic play that focused on the connection. As a result, he finished the game without recording any effective shots. Top striker Dominic Solanke, who returned to the starting lineup, was at his worst, while right wing Brennan Johnson repeated his mistakes. Coach Enze Postecoglou's aggressive strategy of increasing the number of strikers as much as possible remained, but he failed to bother the Arsenal defense.
None of the strikers were satisfied, but all the criticism is directed at Son Heung-min. Especially "We dominated the game. The set-piece defense details were disappointing. "There is a long way to go, but it will surely rebound."Criticism has accelerated since the match interview. "There is no leadership.", "You have to come down from the main battlefield." Not only the back, but even the sound of "the worst argument we have". Of course, there was a response that "(Son Heung-min is legendary") but harsh voices continue.
Looking back coolly at the match against Arsenal, Son Heung-min's role was more of a classic winger. Seated on the left, he sought opportunities. All Son Heung-min could do throughout the game was create a space where left fullback Destiny Udoji dug in. It was not possible to create a scene in which Son Heung-min moved to the center and connected or hit a shot. After Harry Kane's departure, Son Heung-min, who has the best goal-scoring ability in Tottenham, could not be used in half. It was certainly abnormal for players who were less than Son Heung-min to create opportunities and aim for goals.
The bootroom is also 'Sherwood's right. Son Heung-min was not influential in the match against Arsenal, saying 'But he was not the only Tottenham player who suffered. In fact, Tottenham's attacks did not go hand in hand against Arsenal. This means that Son Heung-min was only given a terrible opportunity. Then 'Son Heung-min owned the ball neatly enough and did not give the ball away in a stupid area. The judgment was good, too. But it had no impact as Tottenham's attack continued to collapse. Tottenham had a hugely aggressive lineup, but it was the most lackluster game under Enzi Postecoglou, he added.
It is doubtful whether coach Enze Postecoglou knows how to use Son Heung-min properly. In the match against Everton, which was close to the goal, Son Heung-min scored multiple goals. In other words, Son Heung-min is still capable. However, the British media focused on Son Heung-min, one of the best players in the English Premier League for 10 years, saying he had a poor game, and now fans have joined. Nevertheless, Son Heung-min is fulfilling his responsibility, but the situation continues to run out. Postecoglou is evasive about Son Heung-min's lack of set-piece tactics, and even covered Rodrigo Bentancur, who was racist towards Son.
The unfortunate situation of not being able to properly use and evaluate the players who have devoted themselves to the team for 10 years is repeated.
vanbasten@sportschosun.com
