Heung-min Son has risen through the ranks at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium dramatically since his arrival – with the South Korean now captain for the Lilywhites.
The forward was officially awarded captaincy in 2023, following the departure of Hugo Lloris. He became the first Asian player ever to don the armband around Hotspur Way.
Heung-min Son joins a long list of truly iconic Tottenham Hotspur captains throughout their 142-year history.
Leaders such as Gary Mabutt, Hugo Lloris and Teddy Sheringham have all graced the Tottenham armband.
There is one Tottenham captain though who ranks above the rest in terms of his impact in North London and that is none other than Ledley King. He has high praise for the recently awarded Spurs skipper.
Ledley King labels Heung-min Son as a “great captain”
Having captained Spurs on countless occasions, there is arguably no one better than King, to give their verdict on the Tottenham captaincy.
Speaking exclusively to Football.London, the former defender honed in on Spurs captain, Son, labelling the South Korean as a “natural leader.”
“I think it makes sense. First and foremost, he’s loved by the fans. He’s loved by his team-mates. He’s respected in the game. I’ve had the opportunity to work with Sonny on the training pitch as well and see how he works and you know, he’s someone that every single day, every single minute is giving the best that he can,” he said.
“He’s determined, and he has a streak in him that he doesn’t like to lose, which is important to have. If he doesn’t win on the training pitch, he comes off the pitch upset. I just think he’s grown into that natural kind of leader in the team. I think he’s been a great captain so far. I’m sure he’s still learning along the way, but I absolutely think he was the right man to lead the team.”
Entering his second season as Spurs skipper, Son will be hoping he can follow in the footsteps of the Tottenham legend and lead his side to glory this upcoming campaign.
King wants Tottenham to become ‘winners’
King was of course part of the famous 2008 side that defeated arch-rivals Chelsea 2-1 in the final of the League Cup. 16 years on, however, Spurs are still yet to add to their trophy cabinet.
As the wait for silverware lingers on, King has given his verdict on the current Spurs side, highlighting the importance of a “winning mentality.”
“I think in some ways, we probably over-achieved a little bit last season. We weren’t sure, with the new manager coming in, how long it would take for him to get his style across to the team,” said the former Spurs man.
“We obviously hit the ground running with that, so then the next step is, building on what we had last season, trying to maintain that consistency throughout the season.
“But we have some new players that have come in. We have a young squad, and for the manager, I think his main goal will be developing the young players that we have not just physically and in terms of the system that he wants to play, but also mentally get them in the right mind frame to become winners, to have that winning mentality, which is important moving forward.”
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