Son Heung-min (33, Tottenham) was unusually substituted in the second half against Manchester City (Man City), and the team lost. Manager Ange Postecoglou said, "Son Heung-min has been on the pitch for a lot of time, so I made the decision to substitute him."

Tottenham lost 1-0 to Manchester City in the 27th round of the 2024-2025 English Premier League (EPL) at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England, at 4:30 a.m. on the 27th, allowing the decisive goal to 'scoring machine' Erling Haaland (Man City).

With 10 wins, 3 draws, and 14 losses, Tottenham remained in 13th place, earning 36 points. Manchester City recorded 14 wins, 5 draws, and 8 losses for a total of 47 points, placing them 4th.

Manager Postecoglou set up a 4-2-3-1 formation, positioning Mathis Tel at the front and placing Wilson Odobert, James Maddison, and Brennan Johnson in the attacking midfield. James Maddison, Lucas Berival, and Rodrigo Bentancur managed the midfield. The defense was handled by Kevin Danso, Destiny Udogie, Archie Gray, and Pedro Porro, with Guglielmo Vicario in goal.

Starting on the bench, Son Heung-min was substituted for Wilson Odobert in the 67th minute and played for 23 minutes. He did not record any attacking points.

In the previous match against Ipswich Town (4-1 win), Son Heung-min added 2 assists, achieving a total of 126 goals and 71 assists in the EPL, joining the EPL 70-70 club as the 11th member. However, in this match, he made way for Odobert, who returned after 6 months, resulting in his substitution in the second half.

After conceding the first goal to Haaland in the 12th minute, Tottenham continued to knock on Man City's goal, but ultimately failed to score an equalizer.

Haaland opened the scoring by pushing in a cross from Doku on the left, and thereafter neither team found the back of the net, securing Haaland's goal as the winner.

Haaland found the Tottenham net again in stoppage time of the second half, but the goal was ruled out for a handball after a video review.

Son Heung-min played about 23 minutes, recording 1 shot, a passing success rate of 78% (7/9), 1 opportunity created, and 2 touches in the opponent's box. Football London noted, "He moved into the center in the second half to develop the attack and tried to set up Sar, but his shot was blocked by Ederson," rating him a fairly average 6.

Tottenham players who received higher ratings than Son Heung-min included goalkeeper Vicario, Archie Gray, Lucas Berival, and Rodrigo Bentancur, all of whom received 7 points.

Manager Ange Postecoglou explained the reason for excluding Son Heung-min from the starting lineup, saying, "It's not just a simple rotation. In this match, Udogie, Johnson, and Odobert needed playing time."

He added, "Son Heung-min, Kulusevski, and Spence have played a tremendous amount of time, so I thought giving them recovery time would be more beneficial for us."

Postecoglou also mentioned, "The loss is the most disappointing part," but noted, "I felt that our team was getting closer to its original form in this match. We fought really tenaciously and played assertive football. We did not back down against a strong opponent. Although the loss is regrettable, if the players maintain steady performance like in the second half while in fresh condition, we can progress further in the future."

[OSEN = No Jin-joo, reporter]