They have one of the finest training grounds, one of the finest managers and, now, one of the finest stadiums in world football. The way Son Hueng-min sees it, the foundations are finally in place for Tottenham Hotspur to write a “new history”, a new future of success. The club has created a platform to compete with anyone in Europe and the next step, Son says, is “simple”: it's time for the players to do their bit.
“We have the best training ground in the world,” he says. “I think we have the best stadium in the world. Everything is now ready, to compare to anything. It's now very important that the players are serious and take the chance. It's simple, like this. The answer is now the players, how they perform, how they take things seriously.”
There can be no questioning whether Son takes it seriously. The South Korean's famously permanent grin should not be mistaken for nonchalance. Look beyond the smile and even the most casual observers of Spurs' season will see that Son is the sort of player who works, and works, and then works some more. “I'm a person who wants to work, who wants to be on the top level,” he says.
“Definitely not me,” he says, when asked who deserves the individual gong. “It's very unfair if I get this award because there are players playing very, very well this season. It's very unfair that people talk about me in this award. I'm very proud, of course, but some players are doing better than me.”
The opening of the grand new stadium, though, provides a timely boost. “Finally we are coming back home,” Son says. “The Tottenham of White Hart Lane was a special thing and now you have to make the history for this new stadium. It’s our turn. The past, the history - it’s already passed now with White Hart Lane. We have to make new history with the new stadium.”
Son, in his own words, always tries to be “positive”. But that has not been easy this season, when the delays to the stadium created a sense of displacement and attendances at Wembley began to dwindle. “It’s great to be here again with the fans,” Son says. “The fans were tired as well with Wembley. Of course Wembley is a very nice stadium, but it’s not our home.”
The opening of the stadium has coincided with a rare three-week break for Spurs. It has also been followed by the news that Mauricio Pochettino is almost certainly staying put, with potential managerial vacancies now filled at both Real Madrid and Manchester United. It has been a relentlessly positive few days for the club and Son, who signed from Bayer Leverkusen for £22 million in 2015, knows first-hand how important Pochettino has been in their progression.
“This is my fourth season and of course the first season was not great for me, but still he trusted in me. Always when I play I try to pay him back as I don’t want to disappoint him. I think without him, I probably wouldn’t be like this. I’m grateful.”
Son, it must be said, is surely one of the more straightforward players to manage. He is fast, versatile, two-footed, creative, clinical, ego-free and, above all else, relentlessly upbeat. “Sometimes I can play bad because I’m a human,” he says. “I’m not a robot. I can’t play all the time at 100 per cent. But at least I try my best. Sometimes positive things don’t happen but I still think positive and try again. Imagine if you try 10 times, probably one time it works. This is what I’m thinking all the time.”
The expectation is that the positivity which suddenly surrounds the club will provide the lift that Spurs need to secure a place in the top four. A more interesting question is how far this newfound wave of optimism will carry them in the Champions League, where they meet Manchester City in the quarter-finals.
“It's very important to focus on ourselves,” Son says. “Looking forward, playing here, playing Champions League. At the moment we have lots of games to go, so we have to go for it. Whatever happens, we have to be positive and we have to go again.”