"Unfortunate Own Goal → MOM Reversal in Highest Rating" SON "Man City Killer" One goal-1 assist exploded, escaping Tottenham's third consecutive loss
Tottenham, led by manager Enze Postecoglou, had a 3-3 draw in an away match against Manchester City in the 2023-2024 season at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, the U.K. on Monday (Korea time). Tottenham avoided losing three consecutive games.
Son Heung-min was definitely the key player. Tottenham desperately needed a turnaround. Tottenham showed stellar performance this season with eight wins and two draws in its opening 10 games. However, its main players emerged in succession and faced a crisis. Ivan Perisic, Mickey van der Pen and James Maddison all exited the team. Since then, Tottenham has lost three consecutive games due to "shock."
Manchester City was not an easy target as a team vying for the championship. However, Tottenham showed strong performance against Manchester City. They posted 28 wins, 7 draws, and 17 losses in 52 matches in the previous league. They secured 17 wins at home and 11 wins in away matches. Notably, they secured winless matches in the last five consecutive matches at home. At the center of the victory was the performance of "captain" Son Heung-min. He played in 17 official matches and scored seven goals and three assists against Manchester City. He was a representative "Man City killer."
Postecoglou brought up the 4-2-3-1 tactic. As expected, Son Heung-min played as a front-line striker. Brennan Johnson, Dejan Kulusevski and Brian Hill helped from behind. Giovanni Lo Celso and Yves Bissouma joined hands as defensive midfielders. Destiny Udoji, Emerson Royal, Ben Davis and Pedro Porro were located at the four-back. The goal was guarded by Guglielmo Vicario. 스포츠토토
The game began. Son Heung-min exploded the first goal. He flashed his toes in the 5th minute of the first half. Hill broke through the opponent's pressure and created an attack opportunity with a long pass. Son Heung-min dug into the opponent's side with explosive speed. Manchester City's Doku marked one-on-one, but Son Heung-min overcame it with strength. After that, he shook the net of Manchester City with a powerful right-footed shot. Son Heung-min scored his ninth goal in the league in four games.
The joy didn't last long. Tottenham lost a point just three minutes later. It was Son Heung-min's own goal. Alvarez crossed during a free kick against Manchester City. It was deflected off Holland's head. The ball hit Son Heung-min's leg and went into Tottenham's goal.
Son Heung-min did not give up. He was involved in the build-up and moved more aggressively. He helped his team score in the 24th minute of the second half. Tottenham created an opportunity to attack by stealing the ball from its opponent, when the team was losing 1-2. Son Heung-min grabbed the ball with one touch. After pulling out the opponent's defense, he passed it to Lo Celso. Lo Celso opened Manchester City's goal with a left-footed shot. He hit Man City's goal post and scored a goal. Lo Celso tasted the goal in his second consecutive game. Son added another help.
Son showed great performance by scoring one goal and one assist on the day. After the match, Son became the third man-of-the-match (MOM) this season. He received overwhelming support of 40.8 percent. He previously received MOM honors in the matches against Burnley in the fourth round, Liverpool in the seventh round, Fulham in the ninth round, and Crystal Palace in the tenth round.
English media Football London gave Son a team-high eight points, saying, "He liked the goal at the Etihad Stadium. He scored a great first half and passed. An own goal was unfortunate. But he helped his teammates score. He scored nine points, but he scored eight points due to an unfortunate own goal." SopaScore, a statistics magazine, gave Son the highest eight points in his team. Huscoord. gave Son 7.5 points in grading. It was the second highest in his team after Kulusevski (7.6 points).
