SON HEUNG-MIN has given Tottenham a crucial three points with a 90th minute penalty.
In the first half, Danny Ings headed Southampton ahead against the North Londoners.
But Gareth Bale equalised with a beautiful curling strike on the hour.
And after a VAR check, Son converted from the spot to earn 29-year-old Ryan Mason, the Premier League’s youngest manager, a win in his first game.
THAT’S ALL FROM TOTTENHAM
Tottenham beat Southampton 2-1 after an impressive comeback in the second half at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Spurs were quite flat in the first half with Saints dominating and reaching an opener after 30 minutes when James Ward-Prowse’s stunning delivery from the corner found Danny Ings whose header beat Hugo Lloris.
But the north Londoners picked up the pace in the second half and were a bit lucky as Ings hobbled off the pitch with an apparent hamstring injury.
Tottenham equalised on 60 minutes thanks to Garethe Bale’s incredible curling shot from the edge of the box.
Spurs thought they turned things around soon after thanks to Son Heung-min’s finisher but VAR overruled it
Lucas Moura, who was offside, was blocking Southampton goalkeeper Alex McCarthy’s view as he stood in front of Son.
But VAR worked in Tottenham’s favour soon after when it awarded them a penalty following a foul by Moussa Djenepo on Sergio Reguilon inside the box.
Son took the penalty kick after 90 minutes and beat McCarthy to score the winner on Ryan Mason’s first match in charge of the north Londoners.
That’s all from us here at Tottenham, have a lovely night!
GETTY IMAGES MASON REACTS
Tottenham interim head coach Ryan Mason opened up about his half-time talk, Harry Kane’s injury and Gareth Bale’s influence.
Mason said: “It was just about giving them the belief and the bravery to play and express themselves. The performance in the second half is how we want to be.
“It’s just a case of taking it each day at a time. Harry is giving everything to be back out on the pitch, he couldn’t be today but we’ll see by the end of the week where we’re at.
“Gareth is an exceptional player and especially when you don’t have Harry Kane you need someone who can make that difference in the final third.
“First of all the feeling is a massive relief. It’s been a whirlwind the last two or three days but thankfully we got the win and most importantly I felt second half we were outstanding.
“The performance, the commitment, the energy was brilliant because I thought in the first half we found it very difficult. It was quite tough to get out and they were very good. They created some chances.
“Hugo [Lloris] pulled off two world class saves for us but I thought as the game wore on we gained control of it and I thought there was only one team that was going to win the match”
GETTY IMAGES BALE REACTS
Tottenham star Gareth Bale revealed that half-time’s team talk by young manager Ryan Mason helped them come back in the second half.
Bale told Sky Sports: “They came at us and pushed hard in the first half.
“Obviously we’ve only had a couple of days with the new manager to work on a couple of things.
“At half-time we had a good chat, a few things we could improve slightly, and we controlled the game in the second half and deserved victory. We had a few positional issues and needed to be more patient on the ball.
Obviously it was a very good team-talk at half time, and we came out in the second half to play well.
“Some minor teething issues, but we continue to improve, we’ve got a cup final at the weekend, a few days to work, and we go from there”
GETTY IMAGES
MAS-IVE DEBUT
Tottenham interim head coach Ryan Mason has already achieved something impressive.
Mason has helped Spurs come from behind at half-time as many times as Jose Mourinho already.
This was the former midfielder’s first game in charge of the north Londoners compared to the Portuguese gaffer’s 14 instances under these conditions.
More below:
SON-THING SPECIAL
Tottenham star Son Heung-min has left his mark tonight thanks to his winning goal.
Son registered his fifth goals against Southampton in one season, which is the most a player has netted against a single opponent in one campaign since the 2017-2018 season.
Tonight’s performance also marked the forward’s 15 Premier League goal.
The South Korea international has never had a better season since the day he joined Tottenham in 2015
UPDATED TABLE
Tottenham have climbed up to sixth place and are only two points away from Chelsea and fourth place.
The Blues, however, have a game in hand and so do Liverpool and West Ham, who are also gunning for a top-four finish.
Southampton, on the other hand, remain 14th with nine points still separating them from the relegation zone.
But Saints still have a game in hand
STATS
Tottenham dominated 61.9 per cent of possession throughout the match.
Spurs produced a total of 12 shots, but only three of them were on target.
Southampton, on the other hand, registered 10 shots, with five of them on target.
But Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris was busier as he made four saves compared to Saints’ Alex McCarthy’s one
FT: TOTTENHAM 2-1 SOUTHAMPTON
Tottenham picked up an important victory over Southampton on Ryan Mason’s first match as interim head coach.
Saints opened the scoring after 30 minutes when James Ward-Prowse’s corner-kick found Danny Ings who beat Hugo Lloris with a brilliant header.
After a flat display in the first half, the north Londoners picked up the pace with Gareth Bale running the wings.
Bale equalised for Tottenham on 60 minutes with an incredible curling effort from the edge of the box.
Spurs thought they turned things around soon after when Son Heung-min striked the ball behind Alex McCarthy’s net.
However, VAR overruled that goal as Lucas Moura, who was offside, was obstructing McCarthy’s view as he stood in front of Son.
But the video referee redeemed Tottenham on 90 minutes as it pointed out a foul from Moussa Djenepo on Sergio Reguilon inside the box.
Son took the penalty-kick and scored Spurs’ winner!
GETTY IMAGES PEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!
AND THAT’S FULL-TIME AT TOTTENHAM!!!!!!
TOTTENHAM 2-1 SOUTHAMPTON
90+ 5 YELLOW CARD
Eric Dier picks up a late booking for time-wasting
TOTTENHAM 2-1 SOUTHAMPTON
90+3 Tottenham are comfortable in possession after Son’s goal.
Southampton can;t create any threats in the last few minutes
TOTTENHAM 2-1 SOUTHAMPTON
90 Six more minutes of added time to go.
But can Southampton respond following an unipiring second half?
GETTY IMAGES TOTTENHAM 2-1 SOUTHAMPTON
90 This time it counts!
Referee deems that Djenpo fouled Reguilon inside the box and points to the penalty spot.
Son takes it on and beats McCarthy with ease
GOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLL!
TOTTENHAM COME BACK WITH SON!!!!!!!
TOTTENHAM 1-1 SOUTHAMPTON
89 PENALTY FOR TOTTENHAM!!!!
TOTTENHAM 1-1 SOUTHAMPTON
88 YELLOW CARD
Djenepo gets booked for a foul on Reguilon, which appears to be taking place inside the box.
VAR is also checking that!
TOTTENHAM 1-1 SOUTHAMPTON
87 PENALTY APPEAL
Tottenham are having a penalty shout as a corner-kick sees Adams’ header hitting Vestergaard’s arm inside the box.
VAR is checking this!
TOTTENHAM 1-1 SOUTHAMPTON
85 Southampton try to create some threat down Tottenham’s box but Ward-Prowse’s free kick goes straight to Lloris’ hands.
A draw, though, wouldn’t be too bad for Saints…
TOTTENHAM 1-1 SOUTHAMPTON
83 SUBSTITUTION
Tottenham coach Mason removes his most creative player due to fatigue, it seems.
Bale is replaced by Bergwijn
TOTTENHAM 1-1 SOUTHAMPTON
82 This is why Son’s goal was disallowed by VAR.
Moura, who was offside, appears to be blocking McCarthy’s view as he stands in front of Son
TOTTENHAM 1-1 SOUTHAMPTON
80 Tottenham are still looking for a winner whereas Southampton look to have lost a great deal of motivation.
The visitors are seriously lacking some spark ever since Ings left the pitch
TOTTENHAM 1-1 SOUTHAMPTON
79 SUBSTITUTION
Tottenham coach Mason shakes things up again as he introduces Lamela and brings out Lo Celso
TOTTENHAM 1-1 SOUTHAMPTON
77 Referee is notified by VAR and checks Son’s goal in the monitor.
It appears like Moura, who was offside, was blocking the view as he was standing between Son and McCarthy.
Short-lived joy for Tottenham…
TOTTENHAM 1-1 SOUTHAMPTON
77 NO GOAL!
TOTTENHAM 2-1 SOUTHAMPTON
74 Tottenham have turned things around!
Lo Celso delivers a beautiful diagonal pass to Reguilon down the left flank, where he has been causing all sorts of problems for Southampton.
The full-back passes to Son inside the box who sends the ball to the back of the net!
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
