SON who played with the 1.5th Army, there was no 'star level presence' → 45 minutes change this time.. Watch the lethargic defeat

Nov 08, 2024

SON who played with the 1.5th Army, there was no 'star level presence' → 45 minutes change this time.. Watch the lethargic defeat
ReutersYonhap News



SON who played with the 1.5th Army, there was no 'star level presence' → 45 minutes change this time.. Watch the lethargic defeat
APYonhap News
While Tottenham played in the Europa League without a large number of key players, Son Heung-min also did not stand out.

Tottenham lost 2-3 away to Galatasaray in Game 4 of the 2024-2025 UEFA Europa League League Phase at Neff Stadium in Istanbul, Turkiye on the 8th (Korea time).

Tottenham was relatively relaxed with the victory until the third game. Although he lost the game, he maintained the top eight, which is confirmed to go straight to the next round.



Tottenham arranged the physical strength of its main players as a home game against Ipswich Town in the 11th round of the Premier League is scheduled two days later on the 10th. He is forced to play three games in a week, including the match against Aston Villa on the 3rd, the match against Galatasaray on the 8th, and the match against Ipswich on the 10th. There is an A-match break after the 11th round, but Son Heung-min has to play two more World Cup qualifiers.

Son Heung-min was on the starting list but was replaced after the first half. After 56 minutes at Aston Villa, he was out of the game at fairly fast timing for two consecutive games until the 45th minute at Galatasaray. Tottenham was already behind 1-3 in the first half and was in deep defeat.



Tottenham placed Son Heung-min and Brennan Johnson on the left and right wings, led by promising forward Will Rankshire. James Maddison, Ives Bissouma and Lucas Beribal came out in the midfield.

Except for right wingback Pedro Porro, all of the back four lines were backup agents. Radu Dragusin and Ben Davies at centre-back and Archie Gray at left fullback.



SON who played with the 1.5th Army, there was no 'star level presence' → 45 minutes change this time.. Watch the lethargic defeat
ReutersYonhap News
SON who played with the 1.5th Army, there was no 'star level presence' → 45 minutes change this time.. Watch the lethargic defeat
EPAYonhap News
Tottenham was almost unilaterally beaten because the offense had many first-team players, but the defense was the same as the second-team.

Son Heung-min only contributed to the equalizer in the 18th minute of the first half and was replaced without showing any threatening scenes or leading the attack. Son received 6.1 points (foot mob), the lowest rating among the three-top players. Football London have been harsh with four points.

Son tried to break through by inserting the ball between Galatasaray defender Varsh Yirlemaz's legs from the left. He almost succeeded, but he tripped over a foul tackle.

The referee didn't hang up the game. The flowing ball turned to Gray. Gray floated the ball long into the gate. Johnson, who was inundated, pushed him to the center. Rankshire touched it and balanced it 1-1.

However, Tottenham allowed Victor Osimhen to score back-to-back goals amid sloppy defense. Dominic Solanke, who was put in the second half, recovered one goal, but lost the pursuit power when Rankshire was sent off due to accumulated warnings.

Tottenham manager Enze Postecoglou has been managing Son's playing time extremely conservatively recently.

Son Heung-min has suffered from frequent injuries since the beginning of this season.

Son Heung-min was injured for the first time at home against Karabakh FK in the first Europa League match on September 27. In the 26th minute of the second half, he felt thigh pain and collapsed.

Son Heung-min missed the next three games. He was excluded from Manchester United away in the sixth round of the Premier League, Ferencvaros away in the second round of the Europa League, and Brighton away in the seventh round of the Premier League. He was not also called up for the third Asian qualifying team for the 2026 North Korea-China World Cup.

Son Heung-min returned to action against West Ham in the eighth round of the Premier League on October 19. Son Heung-min was directly involved in the three goals and took the lead in the 4-1 victory. It seemed to announce a spectacular comeback, but the injury recurred immediately.

SON who played with the 1.5th Army, there was no 'star level presence' → 45 minutes change this time.. Watch the lethargic defeat
ReutersYonhap News
SON who played with the 1.5th Army, there was no 'star level presence' → 45 minutes change this time.. Watch the lethargic defeat
ReutersYonhap News
Son Heung-min played three more games. He failed to play against AZ Alkmaar in the third round of the Europa League, Crystal Palace in the ninth round of the Premier League, and Manchester City in the round of 16 of the Carabao Cup.

Son Heung-min returned to the match against Aston Villa in the 10th round of the Premier League on the 3rd.

Postecoglou has been very cautious since this game. Postecoglou called Son Heung-min to the bench in the 11th minute of the second half when the score was 1-1. I took out Son Heung-min at a very early point. It happened just seven minutes after Son Heung-min assisted the equalizer. Postecoglou's decision proved right as Tottenham won a huge 4-1 victory. At the time, Postecoglou said in an official press conference that Son was not planning to play more than 60 minutes.

The 45-minute replacement against Galatasaray seems to be a paving stone for Ipswich's driving on the 10th.

After the game, Postecoglou gave a positive evaluation to the starting prospects Rankshire, Veribal and Gray.

According to Football London, Postecoglou said in an official press conference that "Rankshire scored well. I played hard for the team. He doesn't have much experience on the adult stage. I would have learned a lot from today's game. It was just an overzealous challenge. The same goes for Veribal. It is important to learn the necessary levels. Gray was excellent, too. All three must have learned a lot.'



dhhan@sportschosun.com