Tottenham Hotspur win Europa League semifinal match without Son Heung-min

Tottenham Hotspur are on the verge of reaching the final of the second-tier European club competition after winning the first leg of the semifinals without their South Korean captain Son Heung-min.

Three different players netted for Tottenham in their 3-1 victory over Bodo/Glimt of Norway to open the semifinals of the UEFA Europa League at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Thursday (local time).

The return leg is at Aspmyra Stadion in Bodo, Norway, at 9 p.m. next Thursday (4 a.m. Friday, South Korean time).

Son missed his fifth straight match with a foot injury and watched Thursday’s action in civvies from the sidelines. His last appearance came in the first leg of the Europa League quarterfinals against Eintracht Frankfurt on April 10.

Following their two-goal win, Spurs are in the driver’s seat ahead of the second leg. They are trying to win their first trophy since capturing the 2008 English Football League (EFL) Cup.

This season, they were knocked out in the semifinals of the EFL Cup and in the fourth round of the FA Cup. In the Premier League, they are mired in 16th place among 20 clubs with 37 points, having lost four of their last five league contests.

Brennan Johnson scored in the first minute of the match, and James Maddison put Spurs up 2-0 in the 34th minute.

Dominic Solanke’s penalty in the 61st minute made it a 3-0 match before Bodo/Glimt had the late response with Ulrik Saltnes’ 83rd-minute goal.

In the other semifinal match Thursday, Manchester United blanked Athletic Bilbao 3-0 in Bilbao, Spain.