The ability gap is evident at this point.

Son Heung-min started as a left winger in the away match against Ipswich Town at Portman Road Stadium in Ipswich, England, on the 23rd (Korea time) during Round 26 of the 2024-2025 English Premier League (EPL). He assisted Brennan Johnson with two consecutive goals in the 18th and 26th minutes of the first half. The team achieved a 4-1 victory, marking their third consecutive win.

With this victory, Tottenham recorded 10 wins, 3 draws, and 13 losses (33 points), maintaining 12th place in the league. In contrast, Ipswich, winless in their last 7 matches, is stuck in 18th place with 3 wins, 8 draws, and 15 losses (17 points). They cannot escape the relegation zone.

Son Heung-min recorded his first assist in the 18th minute when the score was 0-0. Center-back Arch Greig sent a long pass of over 50 meters to the left flank, and Son received it, broke through, and assisted Johnson’s opening goal with a low, quick cross. Johnson received Son’s pass and successfully shot with his right foot.

Eight minutes later, Son Heung-min assisted Johnson’s goal again. He made a precise pass while facing the opposing defense on the left flank, and Johnson calmly finished to add another goal. With this assist, his total offensive points for the season increased to 10 goals and 10 assists (6 goals and 9 assists in the league). He has achieved 20 offensive points for nine consecutive seasons since the 2016-2017 season.

Tottenham conceded a goal in the 36th minute of the first half but continued to attack without hesitation. Head Coach Ange Postecoglou chose to stabilize the game by substituting Johnson for James Maddison in the 19th minute of the second half. Pedro Porro also came on for Destiny Udogie. In the 29th minute of the second half, Son Heung-min and Tel left the pitch, and Wilson Odobert and Dane Scarlett came on. Later, Tottenham secured their victory with an additional goal from Jed Spence in the 32nd minute of the second half and a fourth goal from Dejan Kulusevski in the 39th minute.

Tottenham has recorded three consecutive league wins, laying the groundwork for a rebound. Following a victory against Brentford (2-0) on Dec. 2 and Manchester United (1-0) on Dec. 17, they continued their upward momentum with this win. Tottenham, who were eliminated from two cup competitions due to injuries in the defense, regained their form with the return of key players.

It has been about a year and two months since Tottenham recorded three consecutive wins in the EPL, last achieving this from the victory against Newcastle (4-1) in November 2023 to the victory against Everton (2-1) on Dec. 24. Prior to this game, Tottenham's recent atmosphere was quite poor. They lost to Aston Villa in the 32nd round of the FA Cup and were eliminated from the EFL Cup semifinals by Liverpool. Some fans expressed doubts about Head Coach Ange Postecoglou's leadership and called for his dismissal.

In this process, team captain Son Heung-min was also criticized. Some fans evaluated his performance as declining and his leadership as lacking. Former Premier League player Jamie O'Hara even claimed, "There is no aggression, passion, or leadership in Tottenham. The lack of leadership falls on both the coach and the captain. Son Heung-min is no longer suitable as captain."

However, teammates highlighted that they are following Son Heung-min well as captain, indirectly taking a jab at O'Hara. Maddison posted a photo of Son on his social media account after scoring the winning goal against Manchester United on the 17th, saying, "My captain."

Meanwhile, Jack Pitt-Brook, a journalist from The Athletic, pointed out the newcomer Mathys Tel in comparison to Son Heung-min. He analyzed, "Tel started at the forefront but had little presence. Son Heung-min created space by penetrating behind, but Tel was completely unable to do so."

He continued, "Unlike Son Heung-min, Tel also couldn't properly come down to receive the ball. He was completely overwhelmed in battles with opposing defenders and failed to hold the ball well," adding, "He might be okay when playing as a traditional No. 9, but he seems to lack at least multi-faceted abilities."

In fact, Tel was the least effective among the attacking players who started. Jack Pitt-Brook expressed regret, saying, "Tel did not seem to adapt properly to his role in the final scenes. To put it bluntly, that player does not have the talent to play as a No. 9 (unlike Son Heung-min)."

Reflecting this, on the global community platform Reddit, in a self-conducted survey on the Tottenham fan page, Tel received a score of 5.6, highlighting his poor performance. This stands in contrast to Son Heung-min, who recorded two assists and received a score of 8.4, being selected as the Man of the Match.