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Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte has heaped praise on forward Son Heung-min and expressed his pleasure on coaching the 'world-class player'. The former Chelsea manager also revealed that he was impressed by Son long before joining the London club.
With seven goals in the Premier League this season, the right-footed winger is Spurs' top-goal scorer in the league. The 29-year-old has also scored three goals in the last three games as the Lilywhites continue to impress under the Italian boss.
While speaking to reporters on Tuesday and sharing his experience at the club since joining from Inter, Conte discussed Son Heung-min. While shedding some light on coaching the attacker, Conte said:
"We are talking about a really world-class player. I have seen him (Son Heung-min) before becoming manager of Tottenham but only on TV. He impressed me a lot. But when you have the possibility to train him and become his coach, you can see really the quality of this player."
The 52-year-old also commended Son for his ambition and dedication to enhancing his game. Conte admitted that he would like more footballers of Heung-min's quality and mentality to 'improve the level of Tottenham'. Conte said:
"For sure, I try to improve him, to help him but we are talking about a player that is now already at an important level. He has to continue in this way and have this anger, this desire because we need to have players with ambition."
He added:
"If you have ambition, it means you are never happy about your performance. You always want more, more, more and we need these players to improve the level of Tottenham. Sonny is one of these players."
The Italian's plaudits came a couple of days after the South Korean was voted the Tottenham fans' Footballer of the Year of 2021. He took 63 percent of the votes and beat Pierre Emile Hojbjerg, Hugo Lloris and Harry Kane to take the top spot.
"Eric Dier can become one of the best players in the world in that position" - Antonio Conte
Conte, who won the Premier League title with the Blues in the 2016-17 season, believes that English defender Eric Dier can become the best centre-back in the world.
Dier has thrived under the new Spurs coach and has played every single minute in the Premier League since Conte's arrival at the club. While Conte has acknowledged that the Englishman needs to continue to improve, he feels that the 27-year-old can become the best in the business.
Speaking ahead of Tottenham's EFL Cup clash against West Ham, Conte said:
"Eric Dier can become one of the best players in the world in that position. He needs to work and continue to improve and understand the movement with the defensive line. He has to lead more because in that position you have to speak a lot because. You have to stay in the middle, at the back where you can see everything."
Following an entertaining 2-2 draw at home against Liverpool last week, Spurs are set to clash with West Ham United in a London derby in the quarter-finals of the EFL Cup. The fixture will start later today at 1:15 a.m. IST.
