Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heung-min put in a man-of-the-match performance in his side’s 2-0 victory over Fulham last night, scoring the opener before assisting James Maddison’s strike.
The 31-year-old has now notched seven league goals and one assist in eight appearances in 2023-24 after ending last term with just ten league goals, and Michael Owen feels relieved to know that the dip in form Son suffered last term was as a result of an injury and not a lack of form.
The South Korean played with a hernia injury all through 2022-23 before finally undergoing surgery in June, and he has had a new lease of life since the new campaign kicked off.
“This is a serious player and he has been for some years,” Owen told Premier League productions last night after the game.
“He did have a quiet year last year and it was almost a relief to hear that he was carrying an injury for long parts of it, because you’re thinking to yourself, “Is he going off the boil here?”
“But once I heard it was a hernia injury. They are a nightmare, they really are a nightmare. So it was good to hear that, and he is back with a bang now.”
Son revealed that he was in pain all season, with every turn, pass and kick proving difficult.
He won the Golden Boot during the 2021-22 season after bagging 23 goals but had his lowest return since his first season at the club in 2015-16 last term.
Son has hit the ground running under new manager Ange Postecoglou and taken up the captain armband after England international striker Harry Kane left for Bayern Munich in the summer.
Tottenham are top of the Premier League after nine games, with seven wins and two draws to their name, and Son will be desperate to lead them to an improbable title challenge.
Spurs last won a trophy in 2008 and are not one of the favourites to win the title this term, but with the likes of Son and James Maddison in fine form in the final third, just anything is possible for the North London club.
They return to action on Friday with a trip to Selhurst Park to face Crystal Palace, and another victory could get their fans believing that a title challenge is realistic.
