Son Heung-min delivers verdict on Richarlison after Tottenham striker’s double vs Newcastle

Tottenham news as Richarlison receives plenty of praise for his performance in Spurs’ 4-1 Premier League win over Newcastle

Tottenham Hotspur returned to winning ways on Sunday afternoon with an emphatic 4-1 Premier League victory over Newcastle United.

Spurs had gone five games without victory before the visit of Eddie Howe’s side, with their last win coming at the end of October against Crystal Palace.

First-half goals from Destiny Udogie and Richarlison set Ange Postecoglou’s men on their way to a vital three points. Richarlison added another goal to his tally with a well-taken finish in the second half before Son Heung-min scored his first home goal since October.

Richarlison’s double was the first time the Brazilian has scored two goals in the Premier League since April 2022. The 26-year-old’s impressive display will give him some much-needed confidence ahead of a busy December and January for Spurs.

“Yeah Richy (Richarlison) was great,” Postecoglou said after the win. “Really important. I thought him and Pape [Matar Sarr] coming in gave us some real energy.

“We were going to need it today with the midweek fixture and I thought they did that. Their general play was excellent but just their general energy was very good and obviously for Richy getting a couple of goals as a striker that was positive for him.”

The Spurs boss continued: “Richy was important to us at the start of the year too, but he wasn’t fully fit. I think you could tell he was kind of restricted with his movements.

“At times we had to play him out wide just to get him through games. Since he’s come back, it’s fair to say he feels a lot better physically and I think that’s helped him mentally as well. Great for him to get two goals today, but it wasn’t just his goals, it was his general work rate, energy and physicality.”

Postecoglou was not the only one to praise Richarlison’s performance against Eddie Howe’s side. Son, who was named man of the match by Sky Sports for his goal and his two assists, insisted the award should have been given to Richarlison.

“Obviously, when you’re winning the game you enjoy it more. Bouncing back like that was important, we don’t want to make mistakes. I hope we can continue to perform like this and stay humble,” the Spurs skipper said.

“I said it before, we have to be more ruthless in their box, especially when they drop deep. You also have to be clinical. Beating Newcastle 4-1 is not easy, they are a strong side. Credit to the players and fans.

“We are playing in the Premier League and we have to demand more and more. It is never enough, look at the amazing teams, they keep going and going. Today was another good lesson.”

He added when receiving the man of the match award: “I think Richy deserved it, but thank you very much.”