Mauricio Pochettino, ex-head coach of Tottenham Hotspur now leading the US men's national team, is looking forward to going up against his former player and South Korean superstar Son Heung-min when the two countries square off in New Jersey this weekend.
"It is going to be an amazing opportunity to see each other," Pochettino said at his prematch press conference in Morristown, New Jersey, on Friday (local time). The US-South Korea showdown will be at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, at 5 p.m. Saturday (local time), or 6 a.m. Sunday (South Korean time).
"We really love each other and he was a very important player, one of the most important players in my period in Tottenham," added Pochettino, who coached Tottenham from 2014 to 2019. He was the first Premier League coach for Son, who joined Tottenham in 2015 and played there until August this year before signing with Los Angeles Football Club of Major League Soccer (MLS) later the same month.
The Argentine tactician recalled how he was "always chasing" Son, dating back to his time as head coach of another English club, Southampton, from 2013 to 2014.
"When I was in Southampton, I also wanted to sign him but he decided to move to a different club. He moved from Hamburg to Leverkusen," Pochettino said of Son's earlier transfer in the Bundesliga. "But then when we moved to Tottenham, we chased him again, and we convinced him to join us in Tottenham."
Son left Tottenham ranked fifth in club history with 173 goals and he also captained them to the UEFA Europa League title in May this year, their first trophy in 17 years.
"And I think now, he's a legend. After 10 years, he's a legend at Tottenham," Pochettino said. "He is one of the best players in the world. He is an amazing player, but he's an amazing person. Unbelievable."
Addressing Son's move to MLS, Pochettino said the South Korean is "the type of player that's going to help in the evolution of the game."
"For sure, he is going to be an example for the teammates but also for the players that are going to face him during the competition," the coach added. "
In four matches so far for LAFC, Son has recorded a goal and an assist while also drawing a penalty. His arrival has sparked a significant interest in MLS across America, especially among Korean residents.
Pochettino noted that Argentine legend Lionel Messi's presence in MLS has helped raise the level of play in the North American league and Son will only add to that.
"With the addition of Son, the level is growing and the evolution is really good," Pochettino said. "For sure, the interest in the rest of the world in MLS is higher than before (adding) Son."
Pochettino will try to put aside his personal feelings for Son and try to get his 15th-ranked US side past world No. 23 South Korea.
"South Korea is a very good team. Good challenge for us," Pochettino said. "And I think it's important to see the way that we want to compete with new faces, a little bit (of a) different team than we were playing in the last Gold Cup (in July). But I think it is always important, because the challenge for us is to arrive in the best condition to the World Cup, and I think to give options to different players that maybe didn't play before is important because this is a challenge that we need between our players."
A US team official announced after the presser that the match will be played in front of a sellout crowd of 26,500. (Yonhap)
