Paul Merson has made it clear that he is ‘not being disrespectful’ by saying that Tottenham Hotspur are a ‘one-man team’ with Harry Kane, as he told Soccer Saturday on Sky Sports (09/04/22 at 1:00 pm).
Fellow Sky pundit, Clinton Morrison, disagreed with Merson’s comments and claimed that if Heung-Min Son doesn’t make runs in-behind, then ‘how is Kane going to find him?’.
Spurs thrashed Aston Villa 4-0 on Saturday, with Antonio Conte’s side showcasing a ruthless nature to their game.
Kane was involved in three of the goals Spurs scored, as the Champions League-chasing side weathered the storm in the Midlands.
Merson’s comments about Tottenham and Kane came before yesterday’s victory, as ex-Palace striker, Morrison, who is a Spurs fan, slammed his comments.
“I nearly messaged you when you said that,” said Morrison. “How is it a one-man team with Son and Kulusevski?”
Merson responded: “Son and Kulusevski play when Kane plays. If Kane doesn’t turn up, the other two aren’t playing. Believe me. If Son is making runs who is finding him?”
Morrison then made the point: “If Son doesn’t make the runs, then how is Harry Kane going to find him? Who else can make that run in-behind? You are saying ‘they are a one-man team’. But they aren’t a one-man team.”
Merson then added: “But he (Kane) will score the goals. This is me personally. If Harry Kane doesn’t turn up, then Tottenham ain’t winning no game. He turns up against Man City. They win the game. And West Ham. And Newcastle. He doesn’t turn up at Burnley, what happens? They lose.
“I am talking about now and I’m not being disrespectful to the other players. If you have a Ferrari car, you need an engine and he’s the engine.”
Under Mauricio Pochettino, Kane used to have a habit of visiting the treatment room during various periods of the season.
That hasn’t occurred this season, but when it did back then, Son stepped up and produced the goods for the north London side.
Now, Spurs had a much better team back then, but with the South Korean superstar hitting a hat-trick yesterday and his 17th goals of the Premier League season, then more respect needs to be put on his name.
Added with that, other than Luis Diaz, no-one else can probably argue that they have been a better January purchase than Dejan Kulusevski, who assisted and scored once again at Villa Park.
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