"Next week, wake up call for the most important game of the season."
Son Heung-min expressed his determination after Tottenham's hope for the last trophy of the season, losing 0-1 away to AZ Alkmaar in the first leg of the Europa League round of 16.
Tottenham lost 0-1 away to AZ Alkmaar in the first leg of the Europa League round of 16 at Alkmaar AFAS Stadium in the Netherlands on the 7th (Korea time). After dropping out of the Carabao Cup and FA Cup, the only remaining hope of this season, the Europa League is on the verge of being eliminated. In the second round of the round of 16, which will be held at home on the 14th, we are facing a cliff edge situation where we have to try to come from behind.
Tottenham was lethargic on the day. Son Heung-min, who started as a left winger, was also sluggish. In the 18th minute of the first half, Lucas Beribal's mistake caused an own goal in the opponent's corner kick situation while failing to create a decent attack or a decisive attack chance. Son Heung-min played 72 minutes and recorded a total of 43 touches, three shots, and zero effective shots. There was no key pass, and Cross had one success out of two and one dribble. Footmob, a soccer statistics company, gave a rating of 6.3 points and Huscoordcom gave a rating of 6.2 points.
After the game, Son admitted in an interview with TNT Sports that `we didn't meet the performance we needed to play at all.' "It's very disappointing that we played this game, including myself. The next game is going to be the most important game of the season, so it's going to be a big wake-up call." "In the first half, I couldn't produce anything and I was clumsy. We didn't make the play we had to make"I looked back. "Everyone is very disappointed with their individual performance and their team performance. There is no excuse. We weren't good enough" after repeatedly reflecting on ourselves "but it's still only 0-1 and it's not over yet. Next week we have to be much better."
Tottenham manager Angie Postecoglou also failed to reach the necessary level immediately after the defeat against Alkmaar", he expressed his regret. "Today's game was bad in almost every way. We didn't really grasp any part of the game. When I had the ball, I didn't have the drive and when I didn't have the ball, I wasn't as aggressive as I needed", he pointed out.
"I don't think it's a matter of effort or attitude. The problem is not not not not to try, but, as I said earlier, the mindset of fighting the European expedition is not properly equipped. "We have to face some pressure and overcome the storm when we go on an expedition to Europe, but we have failed to do so"It was a pity.
In addition to the defeat, Tottenham faced another bad news on this day. Dominique Solanke, who was put in the 27th minute of the second half instead of Son Heung-min, collapsed again due to a knee injury in his first return match in seven weeks. In this regard, Postecoglou said, `It seems to be a bruise, but I haven't actually seen it. I hope it's not a big injury."
Reporter Jeon Young-ji sky4us@sportschosun.com
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
