It proved to be a critical period, as Son worked extremely hard and took advice from Pochettino about how he needed to knuckle down and not run away from a difficult situation. But a deal could not be struck and with South Korea not having any fixtures during the September international break, Son spent the next couple of weeks training at Hotspur Way. He didn’t feature in Spurs’ first three games of the 2016-17 season and a return to Germany was a distinct possibility. On and off the pitch, Son was struggling to settle. In the final game of the season, a humiliating 5-1 defeat at Newcastle, Pochettino was infuriated with Son and the team’s performance and lack of application. He went on a run of 12 games without scoring and ended the season with eight goals from 40 appearances, and only four in the league (in his four completed seasons since he’s never managed fewer than 18 in all competitions). Son started brightly at Spurs but a foot injury kept him out for more than a month and checked his momentum. “You have to ask him that, I always tell him that.” “He became so good because he played one year with me,” Van der Vaart adds, laughing. I saw straight away that I need to play with him because I thought that us as a combination we could win some games. “He was like a little boy at the time, barely out of his teens. “We had a really good connection,” Van der Vaart remembers. He had joined two years earlier from Hamburg, where he lined up with a Tottenham favourite in Rafael van der Vaart.
Son was 23 at the time and had scored 29 goals in 87 appearances for Leverkusen. Son scored 41 Bundesliga goals across six seasons with Hamburg and Leverkusen (Photo: Getty) Son was quick, made intelligent runs, and was seen as someone who could stretch opposition defences while playing off the emerging Kane, who would act as the team’s focal point. Son decided to leave Hamburg for Bayer Leverkusen instead, and during the intervening two years, he had developed into an even more exciting attacking option. Tasked with scouting Son, Tottenham’s talent-spotters could instantly see why Pochettino had tried to sign the South Korean when he was Southampton manager in 2013. This is the journey of Son the player, the man, the brand. So how has Son transformed from struggling winger to elite forward? From shy newcomer to the centre point of the dressing room? From having a lot of commercial potential to becoming, in one source’s words, “East Asia’s David Beckham”. To give a sense of how Son is viewed nowadays from a marketing perspective, Cristiano Ronaldo is another of CAA’s clients.
The company also looks after the commercial interests of former coach Jose Mourinho and midfielder Dele Alli, the latter of whom recommended the company to Son. Last year, Son joined the sports division of Hollywood talent agency CAA - CAA Base. Had they not, Son would have considered his options.Īs Son’s performances on the pitch have cranked up a few gears, so too has his marketability. Chairman Daniel Levy and his colleagues agreed, taking us to the point where confirmation is expected imminently. He knew he merited a contract commensurate with his performances and standing at the club, and made that point to the Spurs hierarchy earlier this year. Short of confidence five years ago, Son is aware of his value now. The nature of the deal also reflects Son’s changed mindset. The contract will bring Son, now 29, in line with Tottenham’s highest earners Harry Kane and Tanguy Ndombele and reflects his standing as one of the best players in the world. Son’s improvement over the last few years is why he has signed a lucrative new deal at Spurs. Instead, after deciding that he would not run away from the challenge, he knuckled down and became almost the prototypical Mauricio Pochettino player. In the summer of 2016 after a mixed first season in England, Son almost left the club to return to Germany.
0 kommentar(er)
