British media “Football London” reported on the 15th (Korean time) that “Postecoglou continued to yell at Son Heung-min.”
Earlier on the 13th, Tottenham was completely defeated 0-4 in the 33rd round of the English Premier League (EPL) at St. James’ Park, Newcastle upon Tyne, England.
Son played as a forward striker but repeatedly made mistakes as an excuse for losing points, rather than threatening the opponent team. Tottenham manager Enzi Postecoglou replaced Son at the 13th minute of the second half, an unusually early hour.
Football London criticized Postecoglou for failing to tactically maximize Son’s strengths.
Football London said, “Son has displayed countless performances when Tottenham needed him this season. However, he struggled in the center on Saturday (against Newcastle). He touched the ball only 26 times. He never shot or dribbled forward in goal.”
“Postecoglou made Son come down too often. He tried to increase his pass options by calling him into his camp. However, as many people have already pointed out, that is not Son’s strength.”
Football London said, “His back-to-back play has improved in recent years. Nonetheless, he is not a strong hold-up striker. He is more comfortable and driven when aiming for the goal.” He argued that Postecoglou’s order to let Son step down to a lower position and be involved in ball distribution was wrong.
Football London said, “Son’s performance was disappointing. Postecoglou eliminated Son in the 58th minute. His plaintive expression tells everything.”
In other words, Coach Postecoglou made unreasonable demands on Son Heung-min and replaced him early because there was no answer.
Football London hit a sore spot, saying Tottenham was paying the price for not recruiting a replacement for Harry Kane. Tottenham’s flagship striker Kane moved to Bayern Munich just two days before the opening game. Instead of bringing in a new striker, Tottenham extended Hishalisson’s playing time and used Son as a center forward.
Football London said, “Postecoglou wanted to give Hishalisson more chances, but he missed 11 games due to injury. He has 11 goals this season. He is not a player who scores many goals. His public presence is weak in situations such as defense and offensive set piece.”
According to the Evening Standard, Postecoglou was not so agitated.
Postecoglou said: “Newcastle were great. They deserved to win. We didn’t grasp the game at all. We didn’t take the lead at any stage. We paid the price.”
“We allowed the opponent to play the game at will. We didn’t have the courage for the ball. We brought it on ourselves,” he added.
Postecoglou took the helm of Tottenham last summer. He often expressed his intention not to dwell on the immediate results. He said a long-term project is needed.
“This is not the first defeat. It will not be the last. It is part of our growth and it is painful at times. It is the same as every other game. There is no need to sit down and feel sorry for it. There is another game in two weeks,” he said, stressing that he needs to shake off and get up quickly.
BY: 스포츠토토핫