[스포츠한국 김성수 기자] Tottenham, which Son Heung-min (31, Tottenham Hotspur) started as a starter, struggled in the round of 16 of the England Football Association (FA) Cup and suffered a high defeat.
Tottenham lost 0-1 in an away game once morest Sheffield United in the round of 16 of the 2022-2023 FA Cup held at 4:45 am on the 2nd (hereinfollowing Korean time) at Bramall Lane in Sheffield, England.
With this defeat, Tottenham failed to advance to the FA Cup quarterfinals for five years following the 2017-2018 season.
Son Heung-min started this day and played full-time for 90 minutes, but might not record an attack point.
With Son Heung-min starting in three official games, Tottenham took the lead first and ran the game. Son Heung-min attacked the opponent by organically changing positions with Lucas Moura and Richarlison, who were at the forefront.
Both teams, which had rotated for a significant portion of the time, were spending time since the start of the game without making any significant scenes.
Son Heung-min caught the ball several times from the front and side of the Sheffield penalty box, but was blocked every time by the opponent’s quick cooperative defense. In the end, the first half ended with neither team scoring 0-0. Tottenham failed to score a goal despite having an advantage over Sheffield with 8-3 shots in the first half.
There was a scene where Son Heung-min almost got injured. In the 2nd minute of the second half, when Son Heung-min continued to dribble near the center circle, Sheffield defender George Baldock made a back tackle. Fortunately, it was Son Heung-min who woke up quickly and revealed that it was not a big injury.
In the 8th minute of the second half, Son Heung-min received a pass from Moura in front of the opponent’s box and took a left-footed kick. This time he wasn’t blocked by a defensive block, but his shot went strong and floated over the crossbar.
Coach Stellini made a change to the attacking line by replacing Richarlison in the 20th minute of the second half with Harry Kane as the main gun.
But rather, Sheffield took the lead by scoring the opening goal. In the 34th minute of the second half, Sheffield side midfielder Iliman Ndiaye beat the Tottenham defenders with a brilliant dribble from the left inside the Tottenham box, then scored with a low and quick right-footed shot aimed at the near post.
Tottenham became desperate in the 37th minute of the second half, excluding defender Pedro Poro and putting in striker Arnaut Danjuma to launch an all-out offensive for an equalizer. However, in the end, no goals were scored, and he suffered the loss of elimination in the round of 16.
