Tottenham Hotspur head coach Ange Postecoglou has delivered the latest on Son Heung-min‘s foot injury ahead of Thursday’s Europa League semi-final first leg with Bodo/Glimt.
The Spurs skipper has been forced to sit out his side’s last four matches across all tournaments due to the problem, which had plagued him for a while before it was decided he would enter the treatment room.
After the weekend’s 5-1 Premier League destruction at the hands of Liverpool, Postecoglou was non-committal on whether Son would be involved in midweek, but his status has now been confirmed.
The South Korea international was not involved in Wednesday’s training session with his teammates, and speaking to the media, Postecoglou confirmed that Son would play no part in the first leg.
“He won’t feature tomorrow night. He’s out training but he’s still separate from the group. He’s improving so hopefully we can get him back soon,” the Australian said.
Tottenham captain Son ruled out of Bodo/Glimt first leg
© Imago
Son will be one of two Spurs players missing when Tottenham host their Norwegian counterparts on Thursday night, as Romanian defender Radu Dragusin is still on the long road to recovery from an ACL problem.
However, Postecoglou’s squad is in good nick otherwise, allowing the Australian to make as many as eight changes against Liverpool from the side that overcame Eintracht Frankfurt in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final.
The likes of Micky van de Ven, Cristian Romero and Pedro Porro were rested at Anfield, and Postecoglou talked up his side’s physical state ahead of the first leg, adding: “I think we’re in a good place looking at the output of players we’ve got some good minutes into players who needed it and managed the others.
“Players like Romero and Van de Ven have missed so much of the season, it’s not just about getting them back but how you manage them when they come back. Dom [Dominic Solanke] played 60 minutes, Madders [James Maddison] 45. They’re all in a good place physically.”
Postecoglou earned an unwanted slice of history when his side were slaughtered by Liverpool on Sunday, equalling Ossie Ardiles‘s record for the most defeats suffered by a Tottenham manager in a single Premier League season (19).
James Maddison leaps to Postecoglou defence amid sack talk
© Imago
Tottenham’s 16th-placed ranking in the Premier League table would be their lowest in the history of the competition should they stay there between now and gameweek 38, and such a pitiful standing has inevitably led to the expectation that Postecoglou will be fired.
However, the ex-Celtic boss could still lead Spurs into next season’s Champions League with Europa League glory, and playmaker James Maddison leapt to his manager’s defence when facing the media on Wednesday.
“We’re behind the manager 100%. I think he’s a great man. He’s the first person to tell you, I’ve heard it myself, that we’ve been poor in the league,” the England playmaker said.
“We’ve been great in Europe but it’s been unacceptable in the league. He’s my manager, my gaffer and I respect him.”
Tottenham will butt heads with Athletic Bilbao or Manchester United in the Europa League final if they can make it past Bodo/Glimt, who are the first-ever Norwegian side to contest a major men’s continental semi-final.
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