Heung-Min Son‘s difficult week turned a corner on Wednesday with a two-goal day against Red Star Belgrade in the UEFA Champions League.
The brace and 4-1 win came three days after Son was sent off against Everton for a reckless tackle of Andre Gomes, one that broke the Portuguese midfielder’s ankle.
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Son was inconsolable as he left the field, and teammates said he remained so into the locker room.
There were smiles again on Wednesday, even if his goal celebrations were understated at best; The first one a hands folded prayer presumably aimed at Gomes.
“Of course it has been a really tough few days but I have realized how lucky I am with all the support I have had from the fans and my teammates. I can say I’m really sorry for the accident and the situation but I had to focus for the team and I had to keep going and it was the right response to all the people who have supported me.”
Son’s red card was overturned on Wednesday.
Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino said the team was on Son’s side after the incident, which shook all participants at Goodison Park. From Football.London:
“It was a problem for everyone, not only for Sonny, for everyone on the pitch,” Pochettino said. “We feel very sorry about what happened to Andre, but he moved on quickly. We helped him to move on. It was a mix of everything, not only the injury, the red card, how we missed the three points.”
Pochettino praised his side’s performance on Wednesday, and he’ll have to keep his men in the right mindset ahead of Saturday’s Premier League visit from Sheffield United.
As for the UCL, Spurs are back in good position to qualify for a third-straight Round of 16.
The 2019 UCL finalists are five points behind already-qualified Bayern Munich, and can clinch second by beating Olympiacos on the next match day. Failing that, the North Londoners will still have a chance on the final match day at Bayern.
