Former Tottenham Hotspur boss Jose Mourinho has spoken highly of Heung-min Son in a recent press conference, describing the South Korea star as the best player in Asia.
Son may be struggling to recapture the form that won him the Premier League Golden Boot last season, but he still has five goals and two assists in all competitions for Spurs this term (Transfermarkt).
The 30-year-old is an integral part of Antonio Conte’s Spurs squad, and with 136 goals for the club across the years, Son is now eighth on the list of Tottenham’s all-time top goalscorers.
At international level, Son is the captain of South Korea and is currently leading his side at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. He has an incredible 105 caps for South Korea and has scored 35 goals for his country (Transfermarkt).
There’s no disputing Son’s quality and his status in the game. Speaking on the shock win for Japan over Germany in the World Cup, Mourinho turned his attention to the continent of Asia and had nothing but praise for Heung-min Son.
He said (Football Daily): “It is a fantastic achievement but to be honest it was not a crazy surprise. Japan is a good team, with good players. It is getting an accumulation of experience at these events.
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“The majority of players play in Europe where they develop faster and they understand better the high-level game.”
“I think the mentality of the players and the team can also make a difference. In European football, there is a big focus on the individual and egos.”
On his own experiences with Asian players, Mourinho said: “When I look to (Japan) as people and a country; I never coached Japanese players but I coached Asian players. In my case, I was lucky because I coached the best Asian player.”
We think it’s safe to assume he is talking about Son there. As for why he thinks Asian players succeed, Mourinho added: “The mentality is really special. The team is the most important thing, they play for the team, not themselves.”
Spurs Web Opinion
It’s hard to argue with the notion that Heung-min Son is the best player in all of Asia right now. He may not be firing on all cylinders for Spurs, but when he does, there are very few players in world football who can match what he is capable of.
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