This has been a bitterly irritating marketing campaign for Tottenham attacker Heung-min Son.
The South Korean is often an effervescent character sporting a cheeky grin and dazzling footballing potential however that has seldom been seen in 2022/23.
After the primary sport of 2023, Son has solely discovered the online on three events within the Premier League, a shoddy report for somebody often so harmful within the closing third.
Certainly, the 30-year-old beat the goalkeeper a whopping 24 instances final time period, a tally that noticed him recognised as one of the tough gamers to take care of in the complete English high flight.
Sadly, his powers have dwindled considerably below Antonio Conte this season, a incontrovertible fact that was on present within the membership’s 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa on New Years’ day.
Son did his greatest to make issues occur however in the end he was extremely wasteful, with the tone very a lot being set for his afternoon within the first half.
He exchanged passes on the sting of the world however overhit a easy ball in the direction of Harry Kane that may have offered the Englishman with a easy end from shut vary.
Regardless of that lapse in judgement, it was nonetheless maybe the brightest spark for the attacker in a sport the place his menace was severely restricted.
In the direction of the top of the encounter, Sky Sports activities’ lead commentator claimed it has been a “dreadfully disappointing” afternoon for the South Korea worldwide, criticism that was actually warranted.
Son presently appears a shadow of his former self, having managed simply two photographs within the match that amounted to a dreadful xG of 0.06.
It was his creativity that was the worst side of his sport on Sunday, although, with the Spurs quantity 7 failing to give you the products that Kane desperately wanted.
He performed simply one key go and was profitable with solely one of his seven crosses throughout the 90 minutes.
Though the previous Bayer Leverkusen man was fouled three instances, he in the end misplaced possession 16 instances all through, a statistic that’s moderately damning even for a participant who runs with the ball as usually as he does.
Now with no objective in his final eight league outings, it’s time for the £44m-rated large man to show round his type in any other case Conte’s males will probably be left behind within the race for a Champions League spot. As such, they can not proceed to hold an underperforming asset. He wants to start out performing and shortly.