Trix
Well-Known Member
- Jul 29, 2004
- 19,511
- 330,451
Sorry mate, not teasing as I have heard nothing on this. I just think he is perfect for us.
Son Heung Min - signed
- Thread starter 0-Tibsy-0
- Start date
Probably doesn't make much difference but he didn't finish high school, not middle school.
I've followed Asian football closely since the 1998 World Cup Qualifiers. One thing that always stuck out about Son Heung-Min is that he is one of the only prodigal talents on the continent that I can recall going to Europe at a very young age and earning a squad place in a top division team. Other prospects in Asia who ended up top players in the Bundesliga like Mahdavikia and Kagawa didn't go until they were in their early 20's. So, Son took a big risk early on going out of his comfort zone and it undoubtedly paid off.
From a technical perspective, he's a very good footballer. His biggest attribute is that he is very good at striking the ball with two-feet. He's got pace and his workrate off the ball is also quite good. It's also worth noting that Leverkusen use a pressing tactic that isn't dissimilar to what Pochettino would ideally like to implement. So, from a stylistic perspective, he's a better fit for what we are trying to do than someone like Andros Townsend, for instance. Though, with that said, I've never thought he was anywhere near as good for South Korea as he has been for his club teams. In major matches against Iran during the last round of qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup, I thought he struggled against defenders who closely marked him and played him physically, but his responsibilities for the national team and club team are different. This might be because he is given more responsibility with the national team playing up front, and I think any thought that he could be a lone striker in the Premier League is a mistaken one.
With all that said, there are some additional significant concerns that I haven't seen addressed here, but that everyone should be cognizant of, especially given our experience with Lamela (for what it's worth, I think people are too quick to discount Lamela's contribution here), Son's potential price tag, and the desire for so many to project Son as a surefire star as soon as he arrives.
The first major concern is he does not speak English, and it's going to take time for him to settle into life in England (for those interested, here's an interview he did a few months ago: http://www.fourfourtwo.com/features...ea-germany-i-was-told-first-learn-swear-words). So, I hope the club has done their due diligence and are willing to give him all the support necessary to help him transition into life outside of Germany (edit-contrary to what he says in the above linked interview, there is a video I saw posted elsewhere that actually showed him speaking very basic, rudimentary English, so hopefully the club can provide him with tutoring to have him advance his language skills rapidly). He'll be outside of his comfort zone in a major way, which can be very difficult for even experienced players. Pochettino and his future teammates will also have to be patient with him, as I'm guessing there'll be inherent issues with communication that will take time to get used to. I worry reading some of the comments in this thread that people expect him to come in and start firing, which very well may not happen.
The second concern I personally have is that he has played a huge amount of football in the last 2 years. He played nearly 6400 minutes for Leverkusen the last two seasons on top of playing in the World Cup, playing in the Asian Cup during the month of January (when the Bundesliga was on winter break), and playing in WCQ matches. He also will be jetting off to Asia in September to join up with the Korean national team for WCQ matches on September 3rd and 9th in South Korea and Lebanon, which will inhibit his time with his new teammates (presuming we sign him) and make it less likely he'll be available to start matches for some time (my guess is Europa will be where he sees his first action).
At the price tag that we're talking about (if we assume we won't engage in any net spending), he's not without risks, especially given the very difficult start to the season we have after the international break with Sunderland, Palace, Arsenal, City, Swansea, and Liverpool. He'll probably start to show his goods later in the campaign, but people will have to be patient with him, and realize he can be inconsistent at times, even when in good form (not unlike Eriksen).
As an addendum--If I'm being totally honest, I probably would've preferred signing Andre Ayew in June rather than signing Son at the beginning of September. He's going to have to play catch-up to meet expectations, and this squad we have is in dire need of immediate help. Like I said though, he'll eventually show his level, but everyone needs to temper expectations in the near term.
As a second addendum--In case people weren't aware, the European transfer window outside of England closes on Monday at 6 PM in Germany. This deal should ideally be done by Friday, in my opinion, to ward off any last minute suitors coming in for him over the weekend, when one bad performance can make top teams agitate for new signings.
From a technical perspective, he's a very good footballer. His biggest attribute is that he is very good at striking the ball with two-feet. He's got pace and his workrate off the ball is also quite good. It's also worth noting that Leverkusen use a pressing tactic that isn't dissimilar to what Pochettino would ideally like to implement. So, from a stylistic perspective, he's a better fit for what we are trying to do than someone like Andros Townsend, for instance. Though, with that said, I've never thought he was anywhere near as good for South Korea as he has been for his club teams. In major matches against Iran during the last round of qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup, I thought he struggled against defenders who closely marked him and played him physically, but his responsibilities for the national team and club team are different. This might be because he is given more responsibility with the national team playing up front, and I think any thought that he could be a lone striker in the Premier League is a mistaken one.
With all that said, there are some additional significant concerns that I haven't seen addressed here, but that everyone should be cognizant of, especially given our experience with Lamela (for what it's worth, I think people are too quick to discount Lamela's contribution here), Son's potential price tag, and the desire for so many to project Son as a surefire star as soon as he arrives.
The first major concern is he does not speak English, and it's going to take time for him to settle into life in England (for those interested, here's an interview he did a few months ago: http://www.fourfourtwo.com/features...ea-germany-i-was-told-first-learn-swear-words). So, I hope the club has done their due diligence and are willing to give him all the support necessary to help him transition into life outside of Germany (edit-contrary to what he says in the above linked interview, there is a video I saw posted elsewhere that actually showed him speaking very basic, rudimentary English, so hopefully the club can provide him with tutoring to have him advance his language skills rapidly). He'll be outside of his comfort zone in a major way, which can be very difficult for even experienced players. Pochettino and his future teammates will also have to be patient with him, as I'm guessing there'll be inherent issues with communication that will take time to get used to. I worry reading some of the comments in this thread that people expect him to come in and start firing, which very well may not happen.
The second concern I personally have is that he has played a huge amount of football in the last 2 years. He played nearly 6400 minutes for Leverkusen the last two seasons on top of playing in the World Cup, playing in the Asian Cup during the month of January (when the Bundesliga was on winter break), and playing in WCQ matches. He also will be jetting off to Asia in September to join up with the Korean national team for WCQ matches on September 3rd and 9th in South Korea and Lebanon, which will inhibit his time with his new teammates (presuming we sign him) and make it less likely he'll be available to start matches for some time (my guess is Europa will be where he sees his first action).
At the price tag that we're talking about (if we assume we won't engage in any net spending), he's not without risks, especially given the very difficult start to the season we have after the international break with Sunderland, Palace, Arsenal, City, Swansea, and Liverpool. He'll probably start to show his goods later in the campaign, but people will have to be patient with him, and realize he can be inconsistent at times, even when in good form (not unlike Eriksen).
As an addendum--If I'm being totally honest, I probably would've preferred signing Andre Ayew in June rather than signing Son at the beginning of September. He's going to have to play catch-up to meet expectations, and this squad we have is in dire need of immediate help. Like I said though, he'll eventually show his level, but everyone needs to temper expectations in the near term.
As a second addendum--In case people weren't aware, the European transfer window outside of England closes on Monday at 6 PM in Germany. This deal should ideally be done by Friday, in my opinion, to ward off any last minute suitors coming in for him over the weekend, when one bad performance can make top teams agitate for new signings.
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shelfmonkey
Weird is different, different is interesting.
- Mar 21, 2007
- 6,690
- 8,040
Well, that's it then! If he's perfect for us we'll never get him!!!
amathews3416
Well-Known Member
- Mar 3, 2008
- 1,696
- 6,110
I have no concerns, football is a universal language and Son will get on just fine.
shelfmonkey
Weird is different, different is interesting.
- Mar 21, 2007
- 6,690
- 8,040
As good as your Martian
See 4 posts up! Oh and non existent is your answer
Think this should be stickied somewhere if we do sign him and doesn't have a great first game/play for a while!
HappySpur
You Can't Unfry Things Jerri
- Jan 7, 2012
- 7,666
- 19,601
HobbitSpur
The Voice of Reason
- Jun 28, 2013
- 1,785
- 3,818
Doesn't the transfer window closing on Monday only effect German clubs purchasing? Therefore a German club could sell any player to an English club on Tuesday, they just need to ensure that all their purchases are registered by 6pm Monday.
In the interview I linked in my above post, he says he doesn't speak English, but I've just seen a video where he says some very basic things in English, so he might have a very rudimentary understanding. It'll take him time, though, to adapt culturally to different surroundings.
Metalhead
But that's a debate for another thread.....
- Nov 24, 2013
- 25,419
- 38,438
Fingers crossed that it's not another Berahino saga.
littlewilly
Well-Known Member
- May 28, 2013
- 1,680
- 5,231
Not that you're invoking a stereotype or anything. Love the grammar too.
I actually think you're right, but my thought was that Leverkusen will want to spend that money to strengthen their squad, if they do intend to sell him, and will probably want to sell before Tuesday.
On top of my earlier lengthy post, where I tried to be balanced, one very positive thing about Son that I'll say in his favor, is that he fits a profile of players that have done well at Spurs in the last decade. Chadli, Eriksen, Lloris, Vertonghen, Berbatov and Van der Vaart all were players with numerous years of experience at big clubs or in top leagues, they were experienced in CL/EL competitions, and they were key members of their national teams before coming to us. Alderweireld fit all of that criteria, which is why I think he was a great signing, and Son, too, fits all of that criteria, which is why I think he has a chance of success with us.
The other thing about Son is that even though he is 23, he has a ton of top flight experience. He has far more experience playing top flight football than Wimmer, Trippier, and N'Jie combined, so I think if we can be patient with him through January and cope with helping him settle, we'll be rewarded later on in the season.
The other thing about Son is that even though he is 23, he has a ton of top flight experience. He has far more experience playing top flight football than Wimmer, Trippier, and N'Jie combined, so I think if we can be patient with him through January and cope with helping him settle, we'll be rewarded later on in the season.
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