One Tottenham star appears to be finding some joy on international duty, and has been praised for his heroics following some recent criticism from supporters.
Following a disastrous end to their last round of fixtures prior to this break, Spurs face a difficult task in the form of a trip to take on Premier League champions Man City at the Etihad Stadium.
Related
Ange wants Tottenham to sign “fantastic” ace as alternative to Pedro Porro
Spurs are exploring a January move.
Right now, there hasn’t been a better time to play City in quite a while, with the Sky Blues enduring four consecutive defeats in all competitions for the first time in Pep Guardiola’s managerial career.
The first of those losses actually came at the hands of Ange Postecoglou, who guided Tottenham to a 2-1 win over City in the Carabao Cup just over a fortnight ago, courtesy of Timo Werner’s first goal since March and a brilliant long-range strike from Pape Matar Sarr.
Tottenham’s next five Premier League games | Date |
|---|---|
Man City vs Tottenham | November 23 |
Tottenham vs Fulham | December 1 |
Bournemouth vs Tottenham | December 5 |
Tottenham vs Chelsea | December 8 |
Southampton vs Tottenham | December 15 |
However, if they’re to replicate those heroics against a Guardiola side still boasting plenty of quality, they will have to be far better than their last two performances.
Spurs suffered a 3-2 defeat to Turkish champions Galatasaray last week, which arguably flattered Postecoglou, as the home side could have come away with a much greater win considering the chances they created.
That was followed by a dismal 2-1 loss at home to Ipswich Town in the Premier League, with the likes of Radu Dragusin and Pedro Porro enduring nightmares in Tottenham’s last match.
Depending on whether Micky van de Ven will be back at that point, who could come back in to replace the former in Postecoglou’s line-up, both Dragusin and Porro will need to put in far better shifts.
Another star who was subject to criticism after his display against Ipswich was big-name forward Son Heung-min. The £190,000-per-week forward boasts three goals and three assists from his opening eight Premier League matches this season, but supporters weren’t impressed with his performance against Kieran McKenna’s side.
Tottenham star Son Heung-min hailed after South Korea heroics
That is according to pundit John Wenham, who told Tottenham News that Son could get a confidence boost from his South Korea performances on international duty.
The 32-year-old scored his 50th goal for South Korea with a penalty against Kuwait on Thursday, leading his country to a 3-1 win in their World Cup qualifier.
“To reach 50 goals for South Korea is impressive,” said Wenham. “It was a penalty on this occasion. However, you still need to score. I never devalue a penalty, they’re still difficult to convert.
“Therefore, hopefully, that will give Son a confidence booster. He was someone who seemed to take a lot of fan criticism for his display against Ipswich. I don’t think it was against him personally, I just think it is because his standards are so high. He is a world-class player, so people expect a lot of him.”
