Under the microscope: What has happened to Son this season?

Son Heung-Min has been an integral part of the Tottenham Hotspur side for many years now and has 96 goals and 48 assists in 245 games in the English Premier League. The South Korean international won the golden boot in the 2021/22 season and has won the Player of the Month award thrice for Spurs. Therefore, his performance is imperative for the team’s success, and any decline in his form tends to affect his team as well. So far, Son has failed to produce the numbers this season. He has scored only three goals this season in 12 appearances. But considering that all of them came in a single match against Leicester City, his stats for the rest of the season look very slim.

We take a look at some stats to understand why a decline in form happened for Son Heung-Min.

Son Heung-Min Tottenham Hotspur English Premier League 2022/23 Data Stats Analysis

Son is a wonderful dribbler. His goal against Burnley, when he dribbled past the entire team, is proof of that. That goal also earned him the FIFA Puskas award in 2020. As a result, Son’s ability to produce brilliant runs with the ball is always expected. Last year, he averaged 3.66 dribbles per game with a 61.5% success rate. Even though he still has an average of 3.51 dribbles per game, the success rate has come down to 51.2%. His progressive runs have also come down from 2.28 per game to 2.12 per game.

Son Heung-Min Tottenham Hotspur English Premier League 2022/23 Data Stats Analysis

Son has produced 31 penetrating carries into the penalty box this season. Although this isn’t entirely bad and others not finishing the chances has pulled Son back from getting more assists to his name, the difference is when we look at his performance during the same period last season.

Son Heung-Min Tottenham Hotspur English Premier League 2022/23 Data Stats Analysis

During the same period, Son had produced 57 penetrating carries into the penalty box last season. This was crucial for both Spurs and Son as he finished as the top scorer of the season with 23 goals.

Son Heung-Min Tottenham Hotspur English Premier League 2022/23 Data Stats Analysis

Son averages 21.6 passes per game with an 80.8% success rate. This is also a step down from his last year’s record of 28.6 passes per game with an 83.9% success rate. His long passes, which were crucial in changing the direction of attack and counterattacks last season, have also come down from 0.7 long passes per game with 44% accuracy to 0.24 long passes per game.

Son Heung-Min Tottenham Hotspur English Premier League 2022/23 Data Stats Analysis

The decline in the number of goals has been the most tangible problem for Son this year. His average goals per game has come down from 0.64 goals a game last season to 0.24 goals a game this season. Even though his average shots on target per game have gone up from 2.31 per game to 2.85 per game, the accuracy has come down from 59.8% to 48.6%. Hence the drought in goals. His touches in the penalty box have also come down from 3.69 per game to 3.26 per game.

Son is an integral part of the Spurs team, and his team’s form is linearly proportional to his. From these stats, it feels like Son has everything that he needs for a successful season, but he just needs to find his accuracy back and anyone would think twice before ruling him out. His performance against Leicester City was the perfect example of that. Antonio Conte and Tottenham Hotspur’s management will be hoping Son can repeat his performance against Leicester.

Visuals via TFA data viz engine

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