Is Son Heung-Min making the right choice with Spurs?
Son Heung-Min has joined Tottenham Hotspur from German side Bayer Leverkusen. Is moving from one of Germany’s top sides the right career decision for the Korean attacking midfielder?
In an attempt to bolster their attacking line-up, Spurs have paid almost £22 million for the Korean International, who has previously said that his ambition was to play in the Premier League. His form over the last three seasons for Hamburg and Leverkusen has been exceptional, leading to FourFourTwo magazine calling him number one Asian footballer last season. There are questions however about whether Spurs are the right club for Son, with his Leverkusen teammate, the Turkish midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu, claiming that he has been badly advised. It is easy to see Calhanoglu’s point. Leverkusen have finished fourth in the Bundesliga in the past two seasons and third in the season before that, they are not only playing Champion’s league football, but were in the second pot when the group draw was made and have a reasonable chance of escaping the group stage although Barcelona and Roma are probably the favourites in Group E. Tottenham on the other hand have finished fifth, sixth, and fifth over the last three seasons and currently look a long way away from breaking into the top-four. As Son Heung-Min previously said that he moved from Hamburg to Leverkusen in order to play Champions’ League football, it seems surprising that he is so keen on moving to North London.
As Son Heung-Min is yet to complete his military service, it is possible that his value will decrease faster than other players as his European football career will be two years shorter than others. This makes it unlikely that he will move to a bigger club than Spurs in the future as few clubs would be willing to pay more than the 22 million that the North-London club are willing to play. Having lived in Europe since the age of sixteen, it may be possible for him to defer his military service, but Son will be wary of the fall-out back in Korea that former Monaco striker Park Chu-Young faced when he attempted the same thing. To some extent, Son Heung-Min must be regretting his decision not to participate in the London Olympics, where he could have earned an exemption from military service due to Korea’s bronze medal in the games.
However, even though Tottenham might not be the best choice for Son Heung-Min, the Korean is the best choice for Tottenham. Although Spurs have plenty of options in attacking midfield, Son is an upgrade on all of them bar Christian Eriksen. With those two players feeding Harry Kane in attack, few clubs will leave White Hart Lane with a clean sheet this season. Despite what some newspapers might think, Son will adapt quickly to the Premiership, He has spent his entire career playing in the Bundesliga, and at Spurs he will be in the starting eleven every week, which gives him a better chance of transitioning from the Bundesliga to the Premiership than Shinji Kagawa or Andrew Schurlle.
Over the last three seasons, Son has averaged eleven league goals a season and his move to Leverkusen from Hamburg was a club record at the time. At the age of twenty-three, he is improving year-on-year and will be a big hit in the Premier League.
As Son Heung-Min is yet to complete his military service, it is possible that his value will decrease faster than other players as his European football career will be two years shorter than others. This makes it unlikely that he will move to a bigger club than Spurs in the future as few clubs would be willing to pay more than the 22 million that the North-London club are willing to play. Having lived in Europe since the age of sixteen, it may be possible for him to defer his military service, but Son will be wary of the fall-out back in Korea that former Monaco striker Park Chu-Young faced when he attempted the same thing. To some extent, Son Heung-Min must be regretting his decision not to participate in the London Olympics, where he could have earned an exemption from military service due to Korea’s bronze medal in the games.
However, even though Tottenham might not be the best choice for Son Heung-Min, the Korean is the best choice for Tottenham. Although Spurs have plenty of options in attacking midfield, Son is an upgrade on all of them bar Christian Eriksen. With those two players feeding Harry Kane in attack, few clubs will leave White Hart Lane with a clean sheet this season. Despite what some newspapers might think, Son will adapt quickly to the Premiership, He has spent his entire career playing in the Bundesliga, and at Spurs he will be in the starting eleven every week, which gives him a better chance of transitioning from the Bundesliga to the Premiership than Shinji Kagawa or Andrew Schurlle.
Over the last three seasons, Son has averaged eleven league goals a season and his move to Leverkusen from Hamburg was a club record at the time. At the age of twenty-three, he is improving year-on-year and will be a big hit in the Premier League.
