Tottenham’s nightmare season continued with a 2-1 FA Cup defeat to Aston Villa, adding to the pressure on manager Ange Postecoglou. With just two wins in their last 12 league games and only the Europa League left to fight for, questions are mounting about Postecoglou’s future.
But Newcastle legend Alan Shearer believes the real problem lies with Spurs’ senior players, particularly captain Son Heung-min. Speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, Shearer singled out Son, Rodrigo Bentancur, and Dejan Kulusevski for failing to step up.
“It’s the experienced ones that you’re asking for more from. Son missed a sitter in the first half. The youngsters have actually been the bright spots, but there’s a complete lack of confidence and, at times, a lack of fight.”
Son, who took over the captaincy after Harry Kane and Hugo Lloris left in 2023, has looked far from his best. With just six Premier League goals this season, his decision-making has been questioned—especially against Villa, where he passed up a scoring chance to lay the ball
“I was thinking, ‘He’s surely not going to pass here.’ Son of old would have bent that into the corner.”
Shearer agreed, adding:
“A confident Son takes one touch and shoots. Right now, he’s overthinking everything.”
With Tottenham sitting 14th in the league, their season is spiraling. They have a chance to respond when they host fellow strugglers Manchester United on Sunday—but with morale low and key players underperforming, can they turn things around?