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He was like a “villa killer.” Son Heung-min, who had one assist in his return match against Aston Villa, led Tottenham to a landslide victory.
Tottenham won 4-1 against Aston Villa in the 10th round of the 2024-25 Premier League (PL) at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England, at 11 p.m. on the 3rd (Korea time). With this victory, Tottenham secured 16 points, setting the stage for a leap forward. On the other hand, Aston Villa, which maintained 18 points, missed the opportunity to pursue the lead.
On this day, Tottenham operated a 4-3-3 formation. Solanke and Johnson were in charge of the attack, with Son Heung-min, the “Return Captain,” while Sar, Bentancur and Kulusevski were deployed in the midfield. Udogi, Dragusin, Romero and Porro made up the four-back, and Vicario defended the goal.
Tottenham led the early flow of the game. In the 13th minute of the first half, Son Heung-min took care of the free kick, and Solanke continued with a header shot. However, the shot soared high. In the 21st minute of the first half, Bentancur tried to shoot from a long distance, but unfortunately missed the goal.
The atmosphere was reversed in an instant. The crouching Aston Villa counter-attacked and attacked Tottenham’s biggest weakness, set-piece. Tillemans’ corner was blocked in the 29th minute, but Digne crossed again. Onana jumped and hit her head, but the shot was blocked by the post.
Aston Villa’s set-piece led to a score this time. In the 31st minute of the first half, Digne’s corner kick was deflected by Tottenham’s defense, and Vicario blocked it, but the second ball fell into an ambiguous position. Rogers, who seized the opportunity to score, connected with a powerful shot and cut the net.
Tottenham, which gave up the lead, increased the intensity of its attack at the beginning of the second half. The troubleshooter was Son Heung-min. Son Heung-min shook the left side in the third minute of the second half and attempted a sharp cross, and Johnson connected with a shot to equalize the goal. Tottenham’s flow continued. In the 6th minute of the first half, Solanke continued U Do-ki’s cutback to shoot, but was blocked by goalkeeper Martinez’s defense. Son Heung-min’s starting pass was also the main one this time.
Son Heung-min, who did his part, was replaced by Hishalisson in the 11th minute of the second half to prevent injury. Despite the absence of Son Heung-min, Tottenham’s attack did not lose its strength. Tottenham, which had been hitting hard, succeeded in turning the tables. In the 30th minute of the second half, Solanke, who took over Kulusevski’s sharp pass, shook the net with a sensational chip shot.
Tottenham sealed their victory by adding goals one after another. In the 33rd minute of the second half, Solanke took a pass from Hishalisson and lightly pushed it in. In the 6th minute of extra time in the second half, Medison shook the net with a free kick of a flexible trajectory. With Medison’s score, the match ended with Tottenham’s 4-1 victory.
Son, who returned after the match, was mired in injury until mid-week. The starting point was a showdown with Karabakh in the UEFA Europa League held in late September. Son collapsed on his thigh during the match, after which he had a three-week recovery period. He did not join the national team during the A-match period in October, and remained with the club to focus on rest and treatment.
Son returned to the ground through the eighth round of the PL against West Ham in October, and even fired a “return ball” at the match, seemingly signaling his return to normal track. However, there was some news like a bolt out of the blue. Son Heung-min complained of pain again, and he was excluded from the squad. Son missed three consecutive games, including games against Alkmaar, Crystal Palace and Manchester City, due to an unexpected prolonged injury.
Son Heung-min, who returned after a good rest, carefully adapted to the game. In the first half, he took a limited movement on the left side and minimized his participation in sprints and defense. Son Heung-min, who warmed up through the first half, showed off his power at the beginning of the second half. The movement that helped Johnson score in the third minute of the second half was overwhelming. Son Heung-min’s “delivery cross” after shaking the left side was delivered exactly to Johnson’s feet. 메이저놀이터
Son Heung-min’s style of play began to play afterwards, but Postecoglou did not overdo the player who had just returned from injury. Son finished the match by replacing Hichalisson at the 11th minute of the second half. After playing 56 minutes in his return match, Son created two chances and made two dribbles to break through. Football statistics outlet Footmob highly praised Son’s performance, giving him a 7.78 rating.
Tottenham, thanks to the performance of “The Return of Captain,” won Aston Villa to lay the groundwork for entering the top ranks. Tottenham will bring Ipswich home on the 10th to try to win consecutive games.