Son Heung-min shines with goal, 2 assists in Tottenham’s rout of rival Aston Villa

With a dominant offensive showing against a key rival, Son Heung-min has kept Tottenham Hotspur firmly in the top-four battle in the Premier League.

Son scored a goal and set up two others in Spurs’ 4-0 rout of 10-man Aston Villa at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, on Sunday (local time).

Tottenham remained in fifth place with 53 points, two back of Villa, but they have a match in hand. Tottenham also have a better goal difference than Villa, at +20 to +18.

The top four clubs in the Premier League each season qualify for the UEFA Champions League for the following season.

Spurs are six points clear of Manchester United and have a match in hand over them too.

Spurs had over 70 percent of the ball in the opening minutes, though they managed just one shot in the first half compared with five by Villa.

Spurs broke the deadlock five minutes after the restart, thanks to James Maddison. And only three minutes later, as Son set up Brennan Johnson on his left in a three-on-one opportunity.

Villa’s hope for a rally was dealt a major blow when John McGinn was shown a straight red card for a dangerous challenge on Destiny Udogie.

Spurs then made it 3-0 during the first minute of stoppage time, with Dejan Kulusevski finding Son for his 14th Premier League goal of the season.

Son then returned to the setup role, crossing for Timo Werner for his second goal in two matches. The goal completed Spurs’ largest victory in the Premier League since January 2023.

Son is now tied for fourth in goals, four behind Erling Haaland of Manchester City and is in a four-way tie for sixth place in assists with eight. Pascal Gross of Brighton & Hove Albion, Kieran Trippier of Newcastle United and Ollie Watkins of Villa are tied for the lead with 10 apiece.