Tottenham ask for delay in Son Heung-min's Asian Cup call-up... What's the national team's stance?

English Premier League (EPL) club Tottenham are trying to delay captain Son Heung-min's (31) call-up for the Asian Cup in Qatar as long as possible. The plan is to hold off until the club's first match in the Football Association (FA) Cup against Burnley on June 6 next month.

According to reports in local British media on Tuesday, Tottenham are in talks with the national team over the timing of Son Heung-min's call-up. The Evening Standard reported that Spurs and the Korean Football Association (KFA) have yet to agree on a date for Son's departure from England. Manager Anzhi Postecoglou sounded as if there was still room for negotiation, saying "we haven't decided" on Son's departure date.

A check with the KFA revealed that Tottenham had not sent a letter requesting a delay in Son's call-up to the national team. "The Tottenham club can say that, but it looks like they are playing a bit of a media game," said an association official. "National team coach Jürgen Klinsmann knows Tottenham very well, so if there is a request from the club, he communicates with them directly," he added. 카지노사이트 

With a string of injuries to key players, Spurs are eager to utilize Son for one more game. After leading the table at the start of the 2023-2024 season, Spurs have slipped to fifth place. They're also missing key midfielders Yves Bissouma and Pape for the Africa Cup of Nations next month. With an early exit from the League Cup, the only trophy Spurs can realistically hope to win is the FA Cup.

For the national team, however, Son's departure date is not up for negotiation. According to FIFA regulations, clubs are obligated to release their players up to two weeks before the first match of the Asian Cup if requested by the national team. South Korea's first match at the Asian Cup against Bahrain will be on July 15. If the national team denies the request to delay Son's call-up, Tottenham would only have to use him until the 2023-2024 EPL Round 19 away match against Brighton on Sept. 29.

Spurs are expected to use the fact that they sent Son to the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta-Palembang, a tournament in which they are not obligated to play, as leverage in the negotiations. At the 2019 Asian Cup, Spurs have been without Son since the third group stage match against China. If Son plays against Burnley, there will still be nine days before the first Asian Cup group game, so jet lag shouldn't be an issue.However, the national team is as hungry as ever to win the Asian Cup, so it's unlikely they'll give in to Tottenham's demands. With Son Heung-min, Kim Min-jae (27-Bayern Munich) and Lee Kang-in (22-Paris Saint-Germain) considered to be the strongest squad ever assembled, the team sees the tournament as a chance to end a 64-year drought.

The team will travel to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE), next month for a pair of exhibition matches to get organized before the tournament kicks off on June 2. Klinsmann has made winning the Asian Cup his team's top priority, so it is unlikely that he will delay the arrival of key player Son Heung-min, according to the association. If Son gets injured against Burnley, it would be a major setback for the national team's attacking tactics.