The reason why POSTECH coach Son Heung-min was excluded is because
Feb 27, 2025
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Tottenham lost 0-1 to Manchester City in the 27th round of the English Premier League (EPL) of the 2024-2025 season at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on the afternoon of the 26th (local time). Son Heung-min was excluded from the starting lineup. In the 21st minute of the second half, Son Heung-min was put in with Klushevski, Sarr and Spence. He played until the end of the game but failed to score an offensive point.
Attention was focused on Postecoglou's choice. Son Heung-min is a man city killer. He scored eight goals and five assists in 18 games against Manchester City. Coach Postecoglou failed to make full use of Son Heung-min. In response, Postecoglou said after the game, `Son Heung-min, Klushevski and Spence played a lot of games. I needed some time to recover", he explained. It was a choice for physical fitness and recovery.
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-The second half was positive. However, we couldn't produce results.
▶In the first half, I tried to move forward too quickly. There was too much waste, and when you take on Man City in that state, they get into the rhythm of the game. Then they can target us in a variety of ways. I didn't handle that part well. In the end, they scored a goal, and they had a few chances to get ahead.
But in the second half, I definitely felt that we dominated the game and possession. I was really constantly pushing, and I managed the game a lot more calmly. But in the end, there was a lack of goals, so it led to defeat.
-Does being able to replace Kulusevski, Son Heung-min, Spence and Sarr mean the team is getting better and better?
The most regrettable thing is that we lost ▶. But in today's game, we definitely showed more of what we wanted. From my point of view, I fought really doggedly. I played very aggressive soccer, and I pushed against a strong opponent. I didn't slow down the tempo throughout the game. Rather, the players who came in as substitutes at the end of the second half made the team stronger.
The loss is disappointing, but it was a game that showed how we can look when the players recovered enough and prepared for the game. If you can run the game as consistently as you did in the second half, you can go further.
-It was Wilson O'Dober's first start since September, how was his performance?
▶I think it was great. In today's game, it was important for Destiny (Udo-gi) and Brennan (Johnson) to secure time to play as well as him. It's important to get back from injury, but it's more important to get your sense of play back as soon as possible. Wilson hasn't played in a long time, so his sense of play hasn't fully returned yet, but at the same time, his quality was clearly visible. As the second half progressed, I adapted to the flow of the game, and I think it played an important role by breaking through against the opponent, especially at the beginning of the second half. He's a really interesting player, and if we manage this period well and we can keep ourselves in good shape, it will help us a lot in the second half of the season.
-Was it the rotation that excluded Son Heung-min, Kulusevski and Spence from the starting line-up?
▶No, it's not just about rotation. As I said, that's why there's a squad, and if you don't take advantage of it, it's contradictory to complaining about the lack of squads earlier. Today we had Destiny, Brennan and Wilson to play and secure time. On the other hand, Dejan (Kulusevski), Sonny (Son Heung-min), and Jed (Spence) played so many games that they needed a moment to recover. But more importantly, Brennan has been able to boost his sense of play by playing full time for the first time in a long time. Now that the Europa League and league matches follow one after another, we need to get as many players as possible.
-Man City had Holland, you played without Dominic Solanke. Looking forward to Solanke returning?
▶Yes, of course. Not only Dominic, but also Hishali Song. Matistel is playing really hard too, but he's asking for a huge role from him at this level. In fact, he was in a state of need of rest, and continued to play in every game. It will definitely help when Solanke returns. It was harder to break through the opposition defense when he played, and looking at how much of a benefit City had Holland today, we're also expecting Solanke to be stronger in attack when he returns.
-The situation developed dramatically at the end of the game. Do you think Son Heung-min's touch narrowed Sarr's shooting angle?
▶It's hard to say exactly. It happened so quickly. But there were quite a few scenes like that in the second half. There were scenes where the ball passed by in the box, Ederson saved it, or the opponent threw himself to prevent it.
The defeat is disappointing, but the way we played today was close to the direction we wanted. I've already proven that I can show you that, so there's definitely something to learn here.
In the first half, I made a mistake while trying to attack too hastily, and I think if I can run it as stable as in the second half, I can go further.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
