‘We made the decision’ – Cristian Stellini on dropping Son Heung-min ahead of Tottenham's match against West Ham

Cristian Stellini has defended his decision to leave Son Heung-min on the bench ahead of Tottenham Hotspur's Premier League clash against West Ham. Stellini opted to go for Richarlison instead of Son, making it only the second time that Son has been dropped from the starting eleven when fit this season. Ad Son has only scored four goals thus far in the Premier League.

A hat trick against Leicester City back in September (the last time he started from the bench this season) and a goal against Crystal Palace in January. Premier LeagueConte won't return to Spurs until 'entire recovery' after surgery16/02/2023 AT 11:14 Last season, he netted 23 times domestically, winning the joint golden boot alongside Mohamed Salah. «Me, Antonio [Conte], and Ryan Mason [first-team coach], we made this decision because we have a big squad,» said Stellini before kick-off.

«We have to take decisions, and today we want to use energy. We played with Sonny for many games; maybe this game, there could be time to have Sonny during the match. The reason we have a big squad is [to rotate].

»Every time that our players come off the bench, [we hope they] change the game and give us what we need." Rashford contract extension 'a priority' — Ten Hag Mbappe denies criticising Neymar after Brazilian injured in PSG win Man Utd slap £120m price tag on Rashford amid PSG and Real interest — Paper Round Dropping Son was not all that surprising given Stellini's comments on the out-of-form player in his press conference ahead of the match. «Every time when you pick the team, you have to leave someone on the bench, and normally, it is not important the player you have to maybe leave on the bench; it is about the team that has to play. It is also important that