Win, lose, win → Still, I miss Son Heung-min, and the BBC pointed out excessive pragmatic defensive soccer…Villarreal's lucky own goal, 10 Frank needs to improve his offense

Sep 17, 2025

Win, lose, win → Still, I miss Son Heung-min, and the BBC pointed out excessive pragmatic defensive soccer…Villarreal's lucky own goal, 10 Frank needs to improve his offense
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Win, lose, win → Still, I miss Son Heung-min, and the BBC pointed out excessive pragmatic defensive soccer…Villarreal's lucky own goal, 10 Frank needs to improve his offense
EPA Yonhap News
Win, lose, win → Still, I miss Son Heung-min, and the BBC pointed out excessive pragmatic defensive soccer…Villarreal's lucky own goal, 10 Frank needs to improve his offense
AFP Yonhap News
Tottenham, where Son Heung-min (LAFC) left, reported its first lucky victory in its return to the European Champions League (UCL) in three years.

Tottenham won 1-0 in the first round of the UCL League phase of the 2025-2026 season against Villarreal (Spain) at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England on the 17th (Korea time).

The balance was broken just four minutes into the game. Villarreal goalkeeper Luis Junior, who was handling Lucas Beribal's cross ball, dedicated his own goal to a ridiculous mistake, and his joy and sorrow were mixed.




Tottenham stood at the UCL, the 'dream stage', for the first time in three seasons since the 2022-2023 season under Antonio Conte. He finished 17th in the English Premier League (EPL) last season, but there was a dramatic turnaround in the Europa League.

Son Heung-min was also the center of history. He beat Manchester United 1-0 in the final to reach the top of the Europa League. Tottenham was delighted for the first time in 17 years since the top of the League Cup in the 2007-2008 season. The European tournament was the first championship in 41 years since the 1983-1984 season. He won the Europa League and secured a berth in the UCL.

Son Heung-min broke up after the Europa League. Coach Enze Postecoglou was dismissed despite the jubilation of the top. Thomas Frank took the helm of Tottenham and presented victory in his UCL debut.




Win, lose, win → Still, I miss Son Heung-min, and the BBC pointed out excessive pragmatic defensive soccer…Villarreal's lucky own goal, 10 Frank needs to improve his offense
AFP Yonhap News
Win, lose, win → Still, I miss Son Heung-min, and the BBC pointed out excessive pragmatic defensive soccer…Villarreal's lucky own goal, 10 Frank needs to improve his offense
Reuters Yonhap News
Tottenham lost 0-1 to Bournemouth just before the A-match break and suffered its first defeat after two consecutive wins. He soon turned the tables in the fourth round, ranking third with nine points (3-1). They fell behind second-place Arsenal in goal difference, with the same points. Liverpool is in the lead in all four games.

UCL also saw an uptrend. With the victory, Tottenham raced to an unbeaten streak (17 wins and 4 draws) in 21 home matches at the UEFA tournament. Frank made subtle changes with the Hisalysong card.

In the 4-3-3 formation, Xavi Simmons and Mohamed Kudus were located on the left and right, with Hishalisson on the one-top. Pape Sarr, Rodrigo Bentancur and Beribal breathed in the midfield. The four backs were lined with Jed Spence, Mickey van der Penn, Christian Romero and Pedro Porpo. The goal was guarded by Guglielmo Vicario.




My steps were light from the start. It was four minutes in the first half. Beribal crossed for Hishalisson, who was rushing towards the gate. Villarreal goalkeeper Junior tried to catch the ball first but missed it as it rolled into the goal and became an own goal.

However, he failed to score an additional goal. No more luck was followed, with Sarr's shot being saved by the goalkeeper in the 31st minute of the first half. Rather, Villarreal was more threatening.

In the 12th minute of the first half, Villarreal Nicola Pepe's left-footed ball from the right side of the penalty arc slightly off the post and hit the ground. In the 10th minute of the second half, Pepe's left-footed shot went off the post.

Tottenham led 58-42 in ball possession, but fell behind 9-11 in the number of shots. Tottenham recorded one effective shot, and there was no Villarreal.

Win, lose, win → Still, I miss Son Heung-min, and the BBC pointed out excessive pragmatic defensive soccer…Villarreal's lucky own goal, 10 Frank needs to improve his offense
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Win, lose, win → Still, I miss Son Heung-min, and the BBC pointed out excessive pragmatic defensive soccer…Villarreal's lucky own goal, 10 Frank needs to improve his offense
Reuters Yonhap News
Veribal was named the Player of the Match (POTM)', the most consecutive player in the competition. However, the evaluation was mixed. England's 'BBC' analyzed 'Clean sheet mentality, pragmatism proved to be Tottenham's core.

Tottenham have lost only one goal this season. It's a huge improvement compared to losing five goals in the first five games of last season. However, a platform with a more solid foundation could potentially have to pay for it. He recorded only one effective shot against Villarreal. It is the second of the last three games. This is because there were too few attacks on the goal. This is the part where I can feel Son Heung-min's void.

Frank said "We have a very strong foundation in terms of defensive organization, and I think that's good, and we've shown very little weakness."I'm happy to play against a good team in the Champions League. And I know I've taken it to the next level against West Ham. Of course, there needs to be improvement in the area of aggression."



This article was translated by Naver AI translator.