Tottenham Boss Postecoglou Hails Son’s Mentality after Luton Win

30 March 2024, United Kingdom, London: Tottenham Hotspur's Son Heung-min celebrates scoring his side's second goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Tottenham Hotspur and Luton Town at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. (dpa)
30 March 2024, United Kingdom, London: Tottenham Hotspur's Son Heung-min celebrates scoring his side's second goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Tottenham Hotspur and Luton Town at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. (dpa)
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Tottenham Boss Postecoglou Hails Son’s Mentality after Luton Win

30 March 2024, United Kingdom, London: Tottenham Hotspur's Son Heung-min celebrates scoring his side's second goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Tottenham Hotspur and Luton Town at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. (dpa)
30 March 2024, United Kingdom, London: Tottenham Hotspur's Son Heung-min celebrates scoring his side's second goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Tottenham Hotspur and Luton Town at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. (dpa)

Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou hailed captain Son Heung-min after the South Korean attacker's winner against Luton Town on Saturday kept the north London club in the hunt for a top-four spot.

Tahith Chong gave Luton a surprise early lead before Tottenham equalized in the 51st minute through an Issa Kabore own goal.

Son then finished off a flowing team move in the 86th minute to secure a 2-1 win with his 160th goal for the club, which put him fifth on their all-time scorers' list.

"I think the thing about Sonny is that irrespective of opposition or whatever game it is, he has this really high level of expectation on himself to be the best he can be all the time. It's very hard to be like that," Postecoglou told reporters.

"It's a lot easier to try and get comfortable in the state of being as a person or as a player because he's done so much already. But he wants to maintain the highest possible standards whenever he plays, and when you see that with his football, his efforts, his leadership now so it's all encompassing.

"He's been a brilliant footballer for this club for a long time and hopefully for many years to come, and again I thought he was really unlucky with a couple of chances and some good saves. But when we needed him he was there and got the job done."

Tottenham, fifth in the league standings, next travel to face seventh-placed West Ham United in a league match on Tuesday.



Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony: Saudi Team Highlights Cultural Heritage

Saudi athletes wave their country’s flag during the opening parade. (Saudi Olympic Committee)
Saudi athletes wave their country’s flag during the opening parade. (Saudi Olympic Committee)
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Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony: Saudi Team Highlights Cultural Heritage

Saudi athletes wave their country’s flag during the opening parade. (Saudi Olympic Committee)
Saudi athletes wave their country’s flag during the opening parade. (Saudi Olympic Committee)

Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, Chairman of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee, and his deputy, Prince Fahd bin Jalawi bin Abdulaziz, attended the opening ceremony of the 33rd Olympic Games in Paris.

Held outside the traditional stadiums for the first time in history, the ceremony featured a parade of the 206 participating countries on 100 boats traveling approximately 6 kilometers along the Seine River.

The Saudi show jumping team player, Ramzy Al-Duhami, and his colleague, the Saudi Taekwondo champion Dunya Aboutaleb, raised the Saudi flag at the opening of the world’s largest sporting event.

Al-Duhami expressed his pride in raising the Kingdom’s flag alongside his teammate, noting that it was a dream for any Saudi citizen. He wished success for the Saudi athletes in representing Saudi sports with distinction.

Aboutaleb, in turn, said he was honored to carry the Kingdom’s flag at the Olympic Games, stating: “I aspire to perform at a level that reflects the support and attention given to sports in the Kingdom.”

The Saudi athletes’ uniform was admired by the international media and the audience, who applauded the players the moment their boat appeared on the Seine River.

The designs for the opening ceremony were chosen through a national competition organized by the Saudi Arabian Olympic and Paralympic Committee, with the participation of designers from across the Kingdom.

Out of 128 competing designers, the chosen uniform by Saudi designer Alia Al-Salmi featured traditional men’s thobes and bishts and brightly patterned thobe al-nashal for women, symbolizing the athletes’ pride in their homeland and cultural roots.

Mashael Al-Ayed, 17, will be the first Saudi athlete to compete, taking to the pool for the 200 meters freestyle swimming event on July 28. Al-Ayed is the first female swimmer to represent Saudi Arabia at the Olympics.