Jose Mourinho has claimed that Tottenham captain Heung-min Son could be playing for “the best teams” in the world, a list in which he included Premier League rivals Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City.
The influential South Korean forward has now spent nine years at Spurs since joining from Bayer Leverkusen for £22million in the summer of 2015, scoring 162 goals and registering 83 assists across all competitions as one of the club’s most pivotal players under a succession of different managers, including Mourinho himself.
Son previously formed a devastating attacking partnership with Harry Kane, whose big-money departure to Bayern Munich last summer led to his fellow forward being named as Tottenham’s new captain under incoming boss Ange Postecoglou.
It is a role Son has relished and in which he has thrived, with the 31-year-old a vital leadership figure in a new era in north London to go along with the 17 goals and nine assists he has notched so far this term with three games left to go.
Son is only under contract at Tottenham until 2025 after signing a new four-year deal in 2021, though recently reiterated his commitment to the club amid a season of transition that saw them make a blistering start to the Postecoglou era as potential early title contenders before a subsequent dip in form has led to them struggling to qualify for the Champions League.
Now Mourinho has potentially irked fans of the club he managed between 2019-21 by claiming that the Spurs skipper could play for any of the top teams in the world - controversially including another of his former clubs Chelsea on that list despite their recent struggles that may finally be showing signs of abating under another ex-Tottenham manager in Mauricio Pochettino.
“I look at Son as one of the best players in the world,” the self-proclaimed ‘Special One’ recently told EA Sports FC Online.
“Maybe Tottenham supporters they are not going to be happy with what I’m going to say, it’s not of course disrespect. He [Son] could win titles, he could play for the best teams.
“He could be playing in England for Man City, for Liverpool, for Chelsea. It could be abroad, playing in one of the top teams.
“He has this modern mobility of the attacking players. He can play through the middle, he can play from the sides, can be wide, to come inside. Can be inside.”
Asked if he had ever had such conversations with Son during his time in charge at Spurs, Mourinho added: “No, because when I was at Tottenham I wanted him to stay at Tottenham.”