Son Heung-min proves his ability with double

Son Heung-min's multi-goal for the first time in a long time has once again revealed his value.

In the 7th round of the 2024-2025 UEFA Europa League phase at the Free Zero Arena in Hoffenheim, Germany, Tottenham Hotspur defeated Hoffenheim 3-2.

With this victory, Tottenham advanced to the quarterfinals of the Europa League. Although there are many teams that have not yet played the 7th round at the end of the match, they will be able to move up one place above 9th place by overtaking Galatasaray (13 points), who ended up with a draw in the 7th round. If they maintain their quarterfinal ranking in the remaining 8th match, they will be able to advance to the Europa League round of 16 immediately.

It was a match where Son Heung-min's ability to finish with a quick attack shone. In the 23rd minute of the first half, Son Heung-min's left-footed shot deflected after receiving a pass from James Maddison in a counterattack situation and went in after being deflected by the defense. In the 33rd minute of the second half, Son Heung-min received a pass from Mikey Moore in a similar position, opened up a gap with a short dribble in front of the defense, and finished with his left foot. It was a goal that took advantage of the situation where it is not known which way the ambidextrous player will strike.

Son Heung-min has scored 10 goals in 28 games so far. He has played 19 games in the English Premier League (PL), 3 games in the Carabao Cup, 1 game in the FA Cup, and 5 games in the Europa League. His scoring rate is 1 goal per 2.8 games. Considering Son Heung-min's situation of playing games without any particular physical problems since his injury at the beginning of the season and the fact that the season is only halfway through, it seems that he will easily score 10 goals in the league and 15 goals including cup competitions this season.

Since his first season as a non-regular Tottenham player, Son Heung-min has scored more than 10 PL goals every year. He scored 10 PL goals and 14 goals in the season in the 2022-2023 season, which was his lowest scoring season. Compared to that time, his scoring pace this season is a bit better.

Recently, there have been many criticisms that Son Heung-min's performance and finishing ability are not what they used to be, but watching the game today, we could see that if we let Son Heung-min focus more on scoring, he would be rewarded. Son Heung-min is 33 years old. He is at an age where he should focus more on offense rather than doing everything from active defense participation, side breakthroughs, passing, and finishing like in the past. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), who maintains world-class performance at the same age, has also reduced his defense participation significantly compared to when he was in his 20s.

Star players who had a similar playing style to Son Heung-min, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, have also adjusted their roles to focus on scoring goals in their 30s, discarding their former versatility.

The biggest reason Son Heung-min was able to score multiple goals against Hoffenheim for the first time in a long time was because there were frequent quick-break situations. Since the team took the lead early, the opposing team Hoffenheim came out attacking, and Son Heung-min twice responded to the space behind the defense that was created. He showed that he can finish it if given a chance to attack quickly. There is criticism that he is slower than before, but Son Heung-min's current speed is enough to finish a quick attack and beat one person.