FA Cup: Son Heung-min Brace Helps Tottenham Hotspur Reach Fifth Round

Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-min returned to form with two goals in his side’s 3-0 defeat of second-tier Preston North End in the FA Cup fourth round with debutant Arnaut Danjuma also on target at Deepdale on Saturday.

Antonio Conte’s Tottenham were joined in the fifth round by fellow Premier League sides Leicester City, Leeds United and Southampton on a day lacking any major surprises.

Top flight Fulham were held to a 1-1 home draw by second-tier Sunderland at Craven Cottage.

South Korean Son has endured a lean season but made the difference with two superb goals after the break as the visitors moved comfortably through to the next round.

Five minutes into the second half the ball was played to Son outside the penalty area and he struck an unstoppable drive low into the corner of the net.

It was only his second goal since mid-October but 19 minutes later he struck again, turning smoothly on the edge of the box and firing past Preston goalkeeper Freddie Woodman.

Apart from a brief spell in between Tottenham’s goals, Preston rarely troubled the away side who did not even need to bring leading scorer Harry Kane off the bench.

Dutch forward Danjuma, who signed for Spurs on loan from Spanish club Villarreal this week, came off the bench to score his side’s third with a close-range finish late on.

Harry Kane was left on the bench for Spurs’ match at Preston, meaning he missed out on the chance to break his tie with Jimmy Greaves and become Tottenham’s all-time top goalscorer.

In the absence of the England captain, Son stepped up with two fine finishes for a much-needed confidence boost.

The South Korean, who shared the Premier League’s Golden Boot last season, had scored just once in his previous 17 appearances for club and country.

“I needed those goals for my confidence,” Son said.

“It was really important. It was the kind of position I like to shoot. In the first half I had a couple of chances to shoot but the keeper made a good save.

“As a striker or as an attacking player, the important thing is that you get that goal. It’s important that I could help the team go to the next round. I’m very, very happy.”

(With inputs from Agencies)

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