Tottenham captain Son issues target to Richarlison as he prepares to depart

27 December 2023 , 00:01

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Son and Richarlison got Tottenham off to a perfect start but Ange Postecoglou's team endured a nervy ending against Everton.

Heung-min Son has told in-form Richarlison he needs to keep finding the net.

The Tottenham striker made it four goals from three games when firing home the opener against former club Everton on Saturday. And after flattering to deceive for so long since his £50m move at the beginning of last season, Richarlison’s purple patch is coming at just the right time for Spurs as they push for a top-four finish.

Top scorer Son, who has already surpassed his return for all of last season, is set to miss up to a month of action while representing South Korea at next month’s Asia Cup.

That will place an even greater onus on Richarlison to keep up his recent run and Spurs captain Son is now urging his club-mate to hit the baseline target of 15 goals. And Richarlison's best return in the Premier League to date is 13, which he managed in each of his first two seasons at Everton.

“Everybody is very happy for him and very pleased,” Son said. “Richi has to know that he has to score more goals when you play for Spurs. He needs to score more than 15 goals to be striker. Richi is the type of guy who will want to score more and I hope he continues to so he can help the team.”

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Defender Cristian Romero is expected to miss Thursday’s trip to Brighton after coming off against Everton because of discomfort in his right hamstring.

Head coach Ange Postecoglou will provided a fresh update during his press conference on Wednesday afternoon to preview the visit to Albion.

Full back Destiny Udogie will return from suspension but midfielder Yves Bissouma is again banned. Centre back Micky van de Ven and attacking midfielder James Maddison are hoping to return to action soon following injuries but are not yet available for selection.

Midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur and wide players Manor Solomon, Ivan Perisic and Ryan Sessegnon all remain sidelined by injuries.

Alan Smith