There’s only one player as important as Harry Kane to Tottenham

If anyone needed reminding, the last three matches once again highlighted just how important Son Heung-Min is to Tottenham Hotspur. 

A moment of madness against Chelsea cost Son and Spurs dearly. Punished to the full extent of the law for a harmless, yet impetuous donkey kick on Antonio Rüdiger, Son earned a three-match ban.

In Son’s absence Spurs struggled mightily, amassing just four points from 12 against three of the league’s bottom sides. Tottenham barely got across the line against Brighton, salvaged an underwhelming draw against bottom feeders Norwich and were shutout at Southampton. Spurs now have the dubious, unenviable record of leaving St. Mary’s without scoring, the first team to do so in 11 months.

While it’s impossible to know whether Son would have scored against the Saints, we certainly know that nobody can fill the void left by the South Korean’s absence. He makes those around him immeasurably better even if he doesn’t score. He adds a dynamic with and without the ball Tottenham cannot replace.

The threat he offers going forward is indisputable.

But it’s his work rate off the ball that is often unheralded. Harrying and harassing the opposition, Son pushes the opposition into mistakes. He also provides Spurs with a focal point for their lightning quick counter. Without Son, the Lilywhites don’t have the same spark or speed on the break. They don’t attack nearly as formidably, nor do they defend as well as a collective.

He is, in every way, as important to Tottenham as talisman Kane. And we’re thanking our lucky stars that he has served all three matches of his suspension.

Having Son back from suspension is a blessing for Spurs, who can ill-afford to line up without Kane and the South Korean. A Spurs side devoid of their instrumental attackers is immeasurably easier to defend.

For Son, it’s imperative he doesn’t repeat the same naïve, undisciplined mistakes. No matter how frustrated, he cannot lash out and take matters into his own hands. He is too important to his side, irreplaceable and indispensable in every way.