Ange Postecoglou was handed a welcome boost on Saturday afternoon with Pape Matar Sarr making his first Tottenham appearance of 2024. Not featuring since the 3-1 win over Bournemouth on New Year’s Eve due to his participation at the Africa Cup of Nations for Senegal, the midfielder made an early return to north London following his country’s surprise Round of 16 elimination.
Sarr was named as a substitute against Everton on his return to the matchday squad and he was introduced for the final 26 minutes of the contest as he replaced Rodrigo Bentancur in midfield. The 21-year-old was unable to help the Lilywhites get over the line, though, as Jarrad Branthwaite scored deep into stoppage time to seal a point for Everton following a 2-2 draw.
Now that he has Sarr available for selection once again, Postecoglou will be looking forward to having Yves Bissouma and Son Heung-min back with the rest of the Tottenham squad in the not too distant future. Set to see Bissouma return over the coming days following Mali’s AFCON elimination on Saturday evening, it remains to be seen when exactly Son will be back in N17 as South Korea are into the final four of the Asian Cup.
Here we take a look at the duo’s tournaments so far and the Tottenham game they could be back for.
Yves Bissouma
Bissouma’s participation at the Africa Cup of Nations has come to an end following Mali’s heartbreaking defeat in the quarter-finals against Ivory Coast on Saturday evening. Having a one-man advantage and on course to secure their place in the final four following Nene Dorgeles’ sublime strike, the tournament hosts then turned the game on its head with a goal from Simon Adingra to take the game into extra-time before they then struck a winner in the 122nd minute.
An extremely cruel end to the tournament for Mali, it means Bissouma will be back at Hotspur Way in plenty of time ahead of Tottenham’s Premier League clash against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday afternoon. The midfielder’s last appearance for Spurs came in the 2-0 win away at Nottingham Forest in December as he picked up a four-match ban as a result of his red card in the 70th minute.
Having the opportunity to feature regularly for his country at AFCON, it has been a difficult tournament for Bissouma, who reportedly tested positive for malaria early in the competition and was only able to get minutes here and there.
Mali’s head coach Eric Chelle revealed this week: “You know Yves and Moussa [Diarra] were suffering from malaria, regarding the blood tests, it’s not so serious, because someone born in West Africa is used to malaria, [Yves] could play but for Moussa it was different.”
The ex-Brighton & Hove Albion ace featured in four of his country’s five games but it was an even split between starting games and coming off the substitutes’ bench. The reason for his absence in their Round of 16 clash against Burkina Faso was due to muscle tightness sustained in training, thus perhaps explaining his 30-minute cameo from the bench in their quarter-final defeat to Ivory Coast.
Now set to make his return to Hotspur Way ahead of Saturday’s game against his former club, Spurs will need to assess the player’s fitness due to his lack of playing time at AFCON. Bissouma’s return will certainly come as a big boost to Postecoglou and the rest of the players and Tottenham need to get him back to his previous levels as soon as possible.
Son Heung-min
Son is the last man standing when it comes to the trio of Tottenham players who headed off on international duty at the beginning of the year. The 31-year-old has played a huge role in South Korea reaching the semi-finals of the competition and he will be intent on finishing their Asian Cup campaign by lifting the trophy on Saturday, February 10.
South Korea’s road to the semi-finals has not been straightforward at all as they have had to rely on some very late goals in both the group stage and knockout phase. Advancing from their Round of 16 clash against Saudi Arabia on penalties after sending the game to extra time following an equaliser in the ninth minute of second-half stoppage-time, South Korea again needed a stoppage-time goal to take their quarter-final tie against Australia to an additional 30 minutes.
Son proved to be the difference between the sides after scoring a superb free-kick in the first half of extra-time to set up a semi-final showdown against Jordan on Tuesday. Having already played each other in the group stage with South Korea again needing a stoppage-time goal to rescue a 2-2 draw, Jurgen Klinsmann will be hoping that his team do things the easy way on Tuesday to wrap up a piece in the showpiece finale.
If South Korea are to fall victim to a semi-final defeat early next week, Son should be back in the capital in sufficient time for next Saturday’s Premier League home encounter against Brighton & Hove Albion. As nice as it would be to have the Tottenham captain back for the first time in just over a month, all will no doubt have their fingers crossed that he does indeed go all the way and captains South Korea to the first Asian Cup triumph since 1960.
If Son and South Korea are to reach next Saturday’s final, he will be back in a Tottenham shirt the following weekend when the Lilywhites host Wolves at home. Tuesday is the day when Son’s Tottenham return becomes clear.
