Sports

Player ratings as substitute Son ends drought with hat-trick

Tottenham came from behind to earn a riotous 6-2 victory at home to Leicester in the Premier League on Saturday evening, with Son Heung-min bagging a 13-minute hat-trick as a substitute.

James Justin earned Leicester a fourth-minute penalty after a squall of wayward lunges from their flustered hosts, with Davinson Sanchez eventually landing the final clumsy blow.

Youri Tielemans saw his first spot kick well saved by Hugo Lloris but Tottenham’s skipper had strayed off his line. Tielemans crisply ruffled the side-netting with his retake.

Yet, as has all too often been the case for Leicester this term, the Foxes didn’t have long to revel in their lead. Dejan Kulusevski arced in a devastating delivery from a short corner, picking out Harry Kane at the back post to nod in a swift equaliser.

Eric Dier sprinted to the front of a throng at the near post, glancing in Ivan Perisic’s wickedly whipped corner in the 22nd minute – condemning Leicester to their unrivalled 25th concession from a dead ball since the start of last season.

A rollercoaster first half took another loop on the cusp of half-time as James Maddison hauled Leicester level. Timothy Castagne out-jumped Ryan Sessegnon, hooking the ball back for Maddison to spin an effort beyond Lloris’ sprawled dive.

Tottenham took a more proactive approach to proceedings after the interval. Rodrigo Bentancur pushed out from midfield to pick the pocket of a dozing Wilfred Ndidi, confidently stroking Spurs back into the lead within two minutes of the restart with his first goal in 119 club games.

The visitors recovered from a groggy restart to resume the threat that bubbled beneath much of their performance.

However, Bentancur punctured Leicester’s promise as he turned provider in the 73rd minute. Snapping into a tackle on the halfway line, Bentancur set Son running towards goal. The South Korean had been dropped after a goalless start to the season but ended his drought with an explosive strike from range.

After eight matches without a goal, Son had to wait just 11 minutes before he netted his second, sweeping a sumptuous left-footed effort past the hapless Danny Ward. Tottenham’s number seven completed his hat-trick barely 100 seconds later, condemning Leicester to a sixth consecutive defeat as Spurs sliced through the visitors on the break.

GK: Hugo Lloris – 7/10 – Made a glut of important stops after having his initial penalty rebuttal wiped off by VAR.

CB: Davinson Sanchez – 4/10 – Desperately skittish on the ball and not much more composed out of possession.

CB: Eric Dier – 5/10 – Very confident with the ball at his feet but guilty of some unforced errors himself.

CB: Clement Lenglet – 6/10 – Kept everything as safe as he could in an understated display.

RWB: Ivan Perisic – 5/10 – Ragged and rusty when forced to defend in open play but still capable of delivering an excellent dead ball.

CM: Rodrigo Bentancur – 8/10 – Embodied the added intensity Spurs played with after the break, playing with a renewed vigour after a sloppy first half.

CM: Pierre Hojbjerg – 4/10 – Frantic in midfield as the tide of blue shirts seemed to sweep either side of the Dane.

LWB: Ryan Sessegnon – 4/10 – Weak when challenging Castagne, the left-footer was temporarily switched onto the other flank.

RW: Dejan Kulusevski – 6/10 – Produced an excellent delivery that sides with more coherence from set pieces would have also struggled to defend.

ST: Harry Kane – 5/10 – Didn’t see a great deal of the ball after finding the net.

LW: Richarlison – 5/10 – Flickered in and out of the contest, intermittently providing a spiky intervention.

SUB: Emerson (55′ for Perisic) – 5/10

SUB: Son Heung-min (59′ for Richarlison) – 9/10 – Few Premier League substitutions have ever been as emphatic, particularly with the weight of his goal drought to carry.

SUB: Cristian Romero (59′ for Sanchez) – 5/10

SUB: Yves Bissouma (70′ for Kulusevski) – N/A

Manager: Antonio Conte – 6/10 – Sparked an improvement in his side’s work against the ball after the interval but didn’t quite provide the convincing “reaction” he had been calling for.

GK: Danny Ward – 5/10 – Acrobatically tipped a header from Sanchez onto the bar when Spurs were leading.

RB: Timothy Castagne – 4/10 – A threat going forward, but let Kane evade him far too easily at a corner and was often lured infield by Richarlison.

CB: Jonny Evans – 5/10 – Kept Kane quiet for large swathes of the contest in open play.

CB: Wout Faes – 5/10 – Showed a swift turn of pace but still endured a debut to forget.

LB: James Justin – 6/10 – Unsettled the right side of Tottenham’s backline when he ventured forward.

DM: Wilfred Ndidi – 3/10 – Left his attention in the dressing room as he was horribly at fault for Tottenham’s third.

RM: James Maddison – 7/10 – A constant thorn in Tottenham’s side as he repeatedly found space when drifting in off the right.

CM: Youri Tielemans – 5/10 – Gleefully accepted his second chance at a spot-kick but wasn’t as decisive in open play.

CM: Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall – 5/10 – Failed to exert his influence on proceedings in a chaotic affair.

LM: Harvey Barnes – 5/10 – Skirted around the fringes of the contest.

ST: Patson Daka – 6/10 – Eagerly and energetically offered himself as an option bursting in behind.

SUB: Kelechi Iheanacho (75′ for Dewsbury-Hall) – N/A

SUB: Jamie Vardy (75′ for Daka) – N/A

SUB: Boubakary Soumare (86′ for Ndidi) – N/A

Manager: Brendan Rodgers – 4/10 – His side certainly showed the bravery that Rodgers called for pre-game but they were undone by the individual errors that have haunted Leicester this season.

Player of the Match – Son Heung-min

Add Comment

Click here to post a comment

Categories

Newsletter

Loading