Rick Rant - Son is a Shining Light

I am here reminiscing about our 5-nil thrashing of Burnley, because that is what is was. We scored 5 but could have easily scored 3 more in what was the best performance by the team this season.

I will admit, Burnley were poor and on a bad run having lost 5 of their previous 7 games. They did however show some endeavor in the game and should have scored at least one goal. I hope that the fans and the media don't get their knives out for Sean Dyche as he is a decent, honorable and good guy.

The problem Burnley had in this game was they caught us on a good day. Harry Kane was completely unplayable. Dele Alli had a great first half as did Lucas Moura. The defense and the midfield looked a lot more solid presumably because Sissoko was paired with Dier instead of Winks in central midfield (see my previous blog post).

And then we come to Son, Heung-Min Son. What can I say about a player who has been directly involved in 15 goals in his 15 appearances at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in all competitions, more than any other player (nine goals, six assists)? What can say about a player who has been Asian International player of the year 3 out of the last 5 years? What can I say about a player who runs 80+ yards, passed 7 Burnley players to score a goal which will easily be goal of the season? What can I say? We are lucky to have him. He is a shining light in our squad, a genuinely nice guy. If he was almost any other player he would have been condemned for his tackle on Everton's Gomes that led to him breaking his ankle, but he wasn't, because of the genuine distress he suffered. John Terry would have got a 10 game ban.

There is also another itch I need to scratch, the anolomy that is Sissoko. He is so infuriating to watch and I am at a loss that others cannot see what I see when I watch him play. What I see is a player that is ill at ease on a football pitch. He has qualities, his passion and commitment are second to none, he also has a great engine and rarely gets injured everything you need in a premiership footballer. But, his technique lets him down too frequently i.e. kicking the ball directly out of play when trying to pass to Moura. He also makes awkward passes to team-mates which frequently leads to a loss of possession. I want Sissoko to do well, and am very pleased with his new found scoring boots, his one-two with Kane was brilliant.

We have now scored 16 goals in the 5 games since Mourinho took charge, that's more than 3 goals a game. Long may in continue.

Rick - COYS