"Son Heung-min's motivation has decreased."

Tottenham achieved a 3-1 victory over Southampton in the 31st round of the 2024-2025 Premier League at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England, on the 6th (Korea Standard Time).

With this victory, Tottenham broke their losing streak and recorded 37 points.

Tottenham's attack was led by Son Heung-min, Dominic Solanke, and Brennan Johnson. James Maddison, Rodrigo Bentancur, and Lucas Beryval were positioned in the midfield. The defense consisted of Jed Spence, Ben Davies, Cristian Romero, and Pedro Porro, with goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.

Tottenham struggled in their last four league matches before the Southampton game, with 1 draw and 3 losses. They lost 0-1 against Manchester City without Son Heung-min in the starting lineup. They drew 2-2 with Bournemouth, in which Son Heung-min scored the equalizer. They then suffered consecutive losses against Fulham (0-2) and Chelsea (0-1).

However, against bottom-ranked Southampton, they launched an aggressive attack and created a turning point. Notably, several players, including Son Heung-min, showed balanced performances, which was impressive. Johnson, too, stood out with his good performance assisted by Son Heung-min, earning applause.

This season, Son Heung-min has recorded 7 goals and 9 assists. While his performance remains outstanding, it is true that it is somewhat lacking compared to his usual form. He is in a situation where he has scored the least goals since his debut season with Tottenham in 2015-2016, when he scored 4 goals. Though Son Heung-min started the game, he did not record any attacking points but performed actively as a key playmaker for the opening goal.

From the start of the match, Tottenham displayed a barrage of attacks. In the 9th minute of the first half, during a Tottenham corner kick, Romero attempted a powerful header, which was blocked by Ramsdale. In the 11th minute of the first half, Beryval troubled the opposing defense but misfired his shot.

After persistently trying, Tottenham scored the opening goal in the 13th minute of the first half. Especially notable was the left flank combination of Spence and Son Heung-min, which is a key attacking pattern for Tottenham. Son Heung-min passed to Spence, who overlapped on the left flank. Johnson finished off the direct cross.

In the 26th minute of the first half, Tottenham created a sharp diving header from Romero during a free kick situation. However, the shot was sadly blocked by the face of Ramsdale, the opposing goalkeeper. Despite this disappointment, in the 35th minute of the first half, during another free kick situation, Porro attempted a free kick which was touched by Romero, and Beryval shot to score another goal.

However, after more than 5 minutes of video assistant referee (VAR) checks, Romero's offside was declared, canceling the goal. Still, in the 41st minute of the first half, there was chaos in the Southampton box. In that process, Maddison flicked the ball with a header, which Johnson finished, scoring a multi-goal.

The first half ended with a 2-0 lead. Having gained a comfortable 2-goal advantage, Tottenham managed their pace in the second half while preparing for the next match. They have a UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) Europa League quarterfinal first leg against Germany's Frankfurt in the same venue on the 11th.

In the 13th minute of the second half, they substituted Pape Sarr and Odobert for Son Heung-min and Bentancur to conserve energy. Maintaining focus, Tottenham continued to hold steady. However, in the 44th minute of the second half, they allowed a consolation goal to Southampton's Mateus Fernandes.

In stoppage time of the second half, Tottenham earned a penalty kick (PK) as Johnson broke through. Although Johnson was on the verge of a hat trick, he passed the PK to newcomer Mathis Tell. Calmly, Tell finished, concluding the match with a 3-1 victory for Tottenham.

Son Heung-min played a key role in the opening goal. He remained quiet thereafter, recording a passing success rate of 82% (18/22), creating one chance, making one shot, providing four final-third passes, achieving a dribbling success rate of 25% (1/4), and a ground ball contest win rate of 44% (4/9).

On this day, Son Heung-min achieved his 450th match with Tottenham. Since joining Tottenham in the 2015-2016 season, Son Heung-min has consistently played every season, reaching his 450th match, placing seventh in the club's history for most appearances. He is first among active players. With the sixth place Ted Ditchburn having played 452 matches, it is certain he will move up to sixth place within this season.

However, the evaluations were not good. London World gave Son Heung-min the team's lowest rating of 5, noting, "He played a key role, but afterwards, Son Heung-min was somewhat indecisive and did not show his best form."

Football London rated Son Heung-min with the lowest score of 6 among the 11 starters.

Football London commented, "He contributed somewhat to the first goal, but Son Heung-min's efforts in the early second half were thwarted."

This is linked to intensive criticism from Japanese media the previous day.

Football Channel pointed out, "Son Heung-min has one field goal in 14 matches. This match proves that Son Heung-min's slump is not temporary. He played as a starter against Chelsea too, but could not prevent the team's defeat. He missed opportunities at crucial moments."

It continued, "Son Heung-min's last field goal dates back to January 15 against Arsenal. Son Heung-min has scored 7 goals and provided 9 assists, but most of his attacking points occurred during the first half of the season. He has significantly reduced his attempts to break through defenses, and he has fewer crosses and shots. His attacking motivation has clearly decreased."

He received criticism from the British media for failing to score against relegation-threatened Southampton. A regrettable situation has unfolded.

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