From the moment he led his team-mates out for a warm-up amid a cacophony of boos, to his heartfelt appreciation of the away supporters after the final whistle, Son Heung-min demonstrated last night precisely why he is so highly thought of by Spurs and their followers.
Whether it was the clinical finishes to make it 2-0 and 3-0 against Red Star Belgrade, the constant effort and application, or the gesture of apology after his first goal in acknowledgement of his role in the tackle that preceded Andre Gomes’ horrific ankle injury on Sunday, this was a special performance.
Son grabs Spurs second!
A muted celebration from the Korean. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/emCKGLvy9c
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) November 6, 2019
In his television interview after a 4-0 away win that put Spurs on the brink of reaching the Champions League last 16, Son still seemed a little subdued — but within the sanctuary of the boundaries of a football pitch, he was electric.
And though it seems hard to believe now, the pre-match chatter centred on whether Son’s performance would be affected by those traumatic events at Goodison Park. Would he be hesitant? Would he be nervous? Would he be worse than usual? As it happened, Son was none of those things — he appeared more focused than ever.
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Going a little further back, there were doubts on Monday over whether Son would even play against Red Star. The Athletic learnt then that in the aftermath of injuring Gomes, Son “couldn’t think about anything else” and remained withdrawn and distant. In the end, Pochettino selected Son in the travelling party to Serbia, and told reporters on Tuesday that: “Sonny was devastated after Sunday but he is on good form now. After a few days, he is in a very good way.”
Though shortly before kick-off, The Athletic received a less cheery prognosis: “He has still been in shock [since Monday],” said a source close to Son. “He is a little better now.”
Wednesday’s evidence would suggest that the pitch is the best place for him right now. Keeping busy is frequently offered as advice to those dealing with a troubling personal issue — perhaps Son is no different.
And what’s not up for debate is that there are few busier on a football pitch than Son. Even in the warm-up at the cauldron-like Rajko Mitic Stadium, he went about his business with customary diligence. Rotating between his left and right foot, Son pinged passes to Harry Kane and sent a few shots screaming past Paulo Gazzaniga. He was then just pipped by Danny Rose in the final sprint before the players headed for the tunnel to be given their last instructions from Pochettino.
As he entered the pitch for the start of the match, Son spoke to each of his team-mates, exchanging words of encouragement. It was not the time for his novelty handshakes, but instead a warm high five and a hug. Son then made his way over to the left wing and bowed his head in a silent prayer.
In the first few minutes, Son darted around the left flank trying to get a touch on the ball. Sportspeople often talk of nerves dissipating after the first touch or tackle, and Son looked keen to get one or both of those out of the way. In the seventh minute, he got his wish and shielded the ball from a few defenders before rolling the ball back to Danny Rose.
Son was now in the game, feeling confident enough to glide over to the right to get a few more touches, and haring after opposition defenders with typical assiduousness. Midway through the first half, Son made his first meaningful contribution. Receiving the ball on the edge of the box, he shifted it on to his left foot and dragged a shot a few yards wide of the far post.
It was a decent effort, but what was more telling was Rose’s reaction afterwards. Having charged forward on the overlap, Rose was ignored and instinctively threw his arms up in frustration. Appearing to realise that it was Son who had taken the shot, Rose gave his team-mate a thumbs-up and a smile. Kane had spoken before the match about how the team had tried to lift Son’s mood, and it appeared Rose was doing his bit. Son smiled gratefully in return.
Observing Son closely (which felt at times, like being back in the early 2000s watching Sky Sports’ ill-fated Player Cam) a perhaps underappreciated part of his game quickly became apparent: his anticipation. On a number of occasions, Son would hold his position rather than dashing towards where the action seemed to be, and just like that, the ball would land at his feet.
Spurs’ opening goal was a case-in-point. First, when Kane’s rebound hit the post, the ball rolled to Son for a shot that was cleared off the line. Then, if you watch him closely, he quickly got back in position and took a couple of lightning-quick steps in anticipation of Kane’s shot reaching him. Sure enough, it did, even though the ball was travelling so quickly that Son could only stretch out a leg and divert it onto the crossbar. Thankfully Giovani Lo Celso was there to prod the rebound home. At which point, Son quickly ran to his team-mate to share in the celebrations.
The rest of the first half saw Son showcase some of his other qualities. After putting too much weight on a pass meant for Alli, he angrily chastised himself. It was clear evidence of why his former manager at Leverkusen Roger Schmidt described Son as a “perfectionist” to The Athletic this week.
Son finished the first half with five touches in the opposition box — all that was missing from his performance was a goal.
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In the opening 45 minutes, perhaps in his efforts to stay calm, Son had often played the simple pass rather than trying anything too ambitious. By the start of the second, he was ready to rumble — controlling a crossfield pass from Tanguy Ndombele and driving at the Red Star defence.
Then, after 57 minutes, the moment he had been waiting for: Ndombele strode forward and found Dele Alli, who was suddenly in a two-on-one situation with Son. Sensing that if he carried on hurtling forward at the same pace, he might end up being offside, Son checked his run before putting on the afterburners to ensure he latched onto his team-mate’s pass with sufficient forward momentum.
He then took a touch as a defender came flying in with a mistimed slide-tackle, steadied himself, and buried a shot into the roof of the net with his left foot.
In celebration, Son held out his palms as if to say sorry and put his hands together in prayer. No one is suggesting this act will magically cure Gomes but it was a heartening gesture nonetheless from an entirely genuine person. And in a world where even the most token gestures by sportspeople are hailed as a “#classytouch”, it at least felt meaningful.
From a technical point of view, the finish was evidence of Son’s habit of spending hours after training practising shots with his weaker left foot.
Four minutes later, Son scored his second of the game, a simple finish from close range with his right foot from Rose’s low cross. Left foot, right foot — just like those passes he was smashing to Kane in the warm-up.
This time, the celebration consisted of an almost sheepish run around the back of the net with his head down followed by high-fives with his delighted team-mates.
His work for the night was almost done but demonstrating the selflessness for which he is renowned, Son sprinted back into his own half and after intercepting a pass, won a free-kick for his team. With 15 minutes of the match remaining, he was substituted to rapturous cheers from the Tottenham supporters. His warm embrace with Pochettino underlined what a difficult few days it has been.
At the final whistle — after Christian Eriksen had made it 4-0, Ryan Sessegnon providing his first assist in a Spurs shirt — Son headed to the section of the stadium where the away fans were gathered, accompanied by Pochettino and player liaison officer Allan Dixon. Son clapped his hands and held out his palms again — this time in appreciation. “Nice one Sonny, nice one Son…” they serenaded in response.
It would be simplistic to say the match offered some kind of redemption. For a start, Gomes remains injured and nothing Son could do yesterday was ever going to change that. Even for Son himself, once the adrenaline of the match had worn off, his mood was more circumspect compared to the vibrancy of his performance. “I’m really, really sorry for this accident and the situation,” he told BT Sport. “It was a really, really tough few days.”
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After showering and going through his post-match recovery routines, Son entered the mixed zone, where reporters were gathered to try and grab a second with the man of the moment. He stopped to answer questions and then made his way towards the team coach. He was hardly jubilant as he exited the scene but it was a far cry from 72 hours earlier when Son walked through the Goodison Park mixed zone with his head in his hands, not even stopping for the assembled Korean media.
And as the Belgrade rain started to fall, and UEFA’s travelling circus began being packed away, what did it all mean? Perhaps not a lot. Perhaps Son — who had his red card for the tackle that led to Gomes’s broken ankle rescinded — woke up this morning feeling not much different from the rest of the week. Perhaps you consider Son’s mood irrelevant given what the Everton midfielder is currently going through.
All we can say for certain is that for 75 minutes, Son was able to find his happy place. And it was mesmerising to witness.
(Photo: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
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