British media Sky Sports panelists Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher chose Son as the best 11 players in the first half of this season. Neville chose Elling Holan of Manchester City and Gerard Bowen of West Ham United as the two top players, while Son Heung-min and Mohamed Salah of Liverpool were the two best strikers on the right and left sides. Carragher has placed Bowen, Son and Salah as the three top players.
Neville represents Manchester United and Carragher represents Liverpool. He is an English legend who has played for a long time as a member of the English national team. Neville and Carragher, who hold great authority in England, also recognized Son’s performance.
That is a decision that is fully understandable. Son has scored 12 goals and five assists this season, scoring a total of 17 offensive points. He played his part as a striker by filling in the vacancy of Harry Kane, who moved to Bayern Munich in the German Bundesliga. According to the Premier League’s official records, Son is also ranked third in the big chance making list. While Salah topped the list with 14 occasions, Liverpool sideback Trent Alexander-Arnold took the second place. This is an indicator of how great Son has been in this season.
Not only Neville and Carragher but also major U.K. media outlets do not exclude Son from the best 11 players in the first half. Four football London reporters picked their respective best 11 players on Tuesday, and a total of three picked Son. Not only the media but also Opta, a soccer statistics firm, included Son in the best 11 striker category. With Holan and Salah absent, Son was even more notable. He swept all of the best 11 players in virtually all media outlets.
With this momentum, Son is expected to re-enter the Ballon d’Or rankings for the first time in two years. As Son was the top scorer in the Premier League during the 2021-2022 season, he ranked 11th in the 2022 Ballon d’Or rankings. However, he failed to make the list of Ballon d’Or candidates in the 2022-2023 season due to his poor performance due to injury and poor condition. If he continues his performance in the first half of the season, Son is highly likely to be listed in the 2024 Ballon d’Or rankings. 무료 슬롯
Son Heung-min is leaving Tottenham for a while to play in the Asian Cup. It could be a disadvantage in the attacking points race in the league, but a win in a continental competition could be a plus factor in the Ballon d’Or standings.