Son Heung-min (31, Tottenham) looked like Harry Kane (30, Bayern Munich) against Newcastle.
Son scored two assists and added a goal in Tottenham's 4-1 win over Newcastle in the 16th round of the 2023-2024 English Premier League (EPL) at home at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Nov. 11, displaying the kind of "selflessness" that Kane displayed before leaving Spurs last summer.
Son Heung-min, who opened the scoring for Destiny Udogi with a cross from the left in the 26th minute, assisted on another goal, this time from striker, in the 38th minute. Later in the game, Hichalisson made it 3-0 in the 40th minute when he drew a penalty foul directly on the opposing goalkeeper in the box. Son, who scored from the penalty spot against China in a World Cup qualifier last month, converted with a sharp right-footed shot into the bottom left corner of the goal. With his 10th goal of the season, Son set an EPL record for double-digit goals in eight consecutive seasons. He now has 113 career EPL goals, tying him with Arsenal legend Ian Wright for 23rd place.
It's been more than two years and seven months since Son took a penalty in a Tottenham shirt. His last 'PK goal' came in the 45th minute of a 2-1 win over Southampton in April 2021.
There's a reason for that. Even before Son joined the club in 2015, the team had an established PK kicker. Kane. At times, Dele Alli, Vincent Janssen, and Son Heung-min have stepped up, but barring injury, Kane has been Tottenham's penalty taker. In each of Son's recent penalties, Kane has been absent due to injury.
Kane has scored 33 of his 213 career EPL goals from the penalty spot, or about 15.5%. That's roughly one in every six or seven goals. He took all eight of his team's penalties in the 2022-2023 season. Successful six times.
Son Heung-min, on the other hand, has just two PKs out of 113 goals. That's about 1.76%. He has taken fewer penalties with his feet than he has scored from headers (4), which is considered his only weakness. 토토사이트
Before Rochdale (FA Cup) in February 2018, Southampton (FA Cup), Aston Villa (League) in February 2020, Southampton (League) in April 2021, and Newcastle (League) in December 2023, Son had taken only five penalties and converted three of them (60%). If he'd had the opportunity to take penalties consistently for eight years, wouldn't he have been able to build up his stats more easily?Son Heung-min became the first Asian to win the EPL's top scorer award after scoring 23 goals in the 2021-2022 season. The fact that none of his 23 goals were penalties was a big deal in England at the time. If he adds penalty goals to his tally, he could become the second top scorer of all time. Son Heung-min is currently third on the list with 10 goals. He is four goals behind the leader, Elling Holland (Man City, 14), who is expected to be out for a while after suffering a stress fracture. He also missed the game against Luton Town on October 10. Second on the scoresheet is "Liverpool ace" Mohamed Salah with 11 goals.
Son, who scored a brace to end Tottenham's five-match winless run, will look to make it two in a row when the Reds host Nottingham Forest in Round 17 on Saturday. He scored the winner in their most recent meeting in March to secure a 3-1 victory over Nottingham.