Koreans in Europe: Son Heung-min 'devastated' after Spurs 3-0 loss to Fulham

Tottenham Hotspur's Son Heung-min reacts during a 2023-24 Premier League match against Fulham at Craven Cottage in London on Saturday. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

Tottenham Hotspur lost 3-0 to Fulham in Saturday’s clash at Craven Cottage in London, failing to score a single goal for the first time in the 2023-24 Premier League season.

Tottenham displayed a lackluster performance throughout the fixture, with forwards seeming to squander every valid chance.

Spurs captain Son Heung-min, who went into the match on the back of two goals in two matches, came close to opening the scoring in the 24th minute when he received a pass from James Maddison but shot it over the crossbar.

Fulham took the lead with Rodrigo Muniz’s goal in the 42nd minute, followed by Sasa Lukic’s goal in the 49th. Muniz then scored again in the 61st minute to manage a double.

Spurs, meanwhile, failed to pull anything serious together through the end of the final whistle. Forward Timo Werner found a huge chance to get Spurs on the scoresheet in the 69th minute, but he blazed his shot wide in front of goal.

“It is a very tough night, especially we played amazing last week and coming here with big confidence and positive energy, and the result like that is always painful as player, and as fans I know it is even more pain,” Son said after the match. “I can’t describe any feeling. I’m devastated, disappointed and frustrated. As a captain of this club, I just want to apologize to the Tottenham fans because they don’t deserve that result and performance.”

Spurs remained in fifth place with the 3-0 loss. A win would have allowed Spurs to snatch the fourth position on the league table from Aston Villa.

The only title Spurs have a chance of winning this season is the Premier League, having crashed out of the FA Cup with a loss to Manchester City in January and having made an early exit from the Carabao Cup with a loss to Fulham in August last year.

Tottenham will be back in action on March 30 when they face Luton Town at home after the FIFA international break.

Son will be with the Korean national team during the break, as Korea take on Thailand in two World Cup qualifiers on March 21 and 26.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]