‘Captain’ Son Heung-min played the full match, but Tottenham suffered their first loss of the season in the English Professional Soccer Premier League (EPL) as they were swept aside by Chelsea after a string of bad luck.

Son started and played the entirety of Tottenham’s 2023-2024 EPL Round 11 home match against Chelsea at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England, on Sunday (July 7).

Son, who is tied for second in EPL scoring behind Elling Holland (Manchester City-11) with eight goals this season, did not add a goal or an assist on the day.

His streak of attacking points was snapped in the last two games, including one goal and one assist in Round 9 against Fulham and one goal in Round 10 against Crystal Palace.

Tottenham, who have won eight of their last 10 games in the league since the start of the season under manager Anzhi Postecoglou, suffered their first defeat in the league in a 1-4 setback that saw defenders Cristian Romero and Destiny Udogie sent off in quick succession.

With 26 points, Spurs remain in second place behind Man City (27 points).

Chelsea, coached this season by Mauricio Pochettino, who managed Tottenham from 2014-2019 and was instrumental in the signing of Son Heung-min and the club’s rise to prominence in the EPL, have won four games (three draws and four defeats) this season to move up to 10th place (15 points).

The game started well for Spurs.

Six minutes into the game, it looked like they would continue their recent run of form when Dejan Kuluczewski cut inside the penalty area from the right flank after a pass from Pape Sarr on the counter-attack and slotted a left-footed shot into the back of the net.

In the 13th minute, Son Heung-min got on the end of a low cross from Brennan Johnson on the left flank and rattled the net with his foot, but video assistant referee (VAR) pointed to offside, denying South Korea a further goal.

Chelsea also had a goal disallowed in the 21st minute when Raheem Sterling’s shot from the edge of the box went in, but VAR confirmed a handball.

Romero’s sending off in the 33rd minute changed the course of the game.

Romero made a deep tackle on Enso Fernandez as he attempted to shoot inside the penalty area, and the referee’s on-field review showed a red card.

From the resulting penalty, Chelsea’s Cole Palmer equalized to put the game out of reach.

Spurs suffered further setbacks in the closing stages of the first half when midfielder James Maddison went down suddenly with a sore left ankle and defender Micky Vander Penn pulled a hamstring. They were replaced by Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Emerson Royal, respectively.

The 12 minutes of first-half stoppage time was a fiery affair, with three warnings issued at once as players on both sides got nervous.

Tottenham’s woes continued in the second half.

Ten minutes into the second half, full-back Udogie was sent off for a second bookable offense for a rough tackle while trying to stop an opponent after a miscommunication, leaving Spurs down to nine men and eventually conceding a late goal to Nicola Jackson in the 30th minute. 카지노사이트

Spurs then poured forward against a Chelsea side looking to settle down, but found it difficult to overcome their numerical disadvantage.

In the 33rd minute, Eric Dier’s shot from a free-kick was ruled out for offside, and in the 41st minute, Rodrigo Bentancur got a foot to a Pedro Foro free-kick from the left flank that deflected to the right of the post and hit the ground.

Three minutes into the nine-minute second-half stoppage time, Hoe-Seom’s left-footed shot from the center of the penalty area after a solo dribble by Son Heung-min was saved by goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.

Shortly afterward, Jackson’s wedge put Chelsea in control, and a fourth goal in stoppage time to complete his hat-trick left Spurs to ruminate on the defeat.

Pochettino greeted the Tottenham staff, including manager Postecoglou, after the game and also hugged and consoled Son Heung-min.