Manuel Akanji is joking about Son’s two-footed prowess
Manchester City center-back Manuel Akanji (29) is joking about Son Heung-Min (31, Tottenham)’s two-footed prowess.
The Swiss international has anchored City’s back line since the 2022-2023 season, having previously played for Basel and Dortmund. Along with Jubeng Dias, he has formed the nucleus of City’s formidable defense and has contributed to a fourth straight league title this season after last season’s treble.
In an interview with the official English Premier League (EPL) YouTube channel two weeks ago, Akanji was asked about how he defends opposing strikers in one-on-one situations, 안전놀이터 and he mentioned Son Heung-min.
When asked what he thinks about when an attacker is running at him in a one-on-one situation and how he goes about intercepting the ball, Akanji said, “It depends on the situation.”
“Most of the time, if you’re close to the goal, for example, you don’t want him to shoot with his strong foot. All players shoot better with their stronger foot than their weaker foot,” he said, but then paused and laughed, ‘except for Son Heung-min.’
Son Heung-min is known for using both feet.
He is a strong and accurate shooter with both feet, making him the worst offense for defenders who have tried to stop him. For Akanji, Son Heung-min is an exceptional attacker.
The host also said, “That’s right. It’s true,” and laughed along as he said, ‘Son Heung-min can go either way.’ A defender basically chooses a side, either left or right, to create a situation where the opposing attacker cannot use his strong foot. 파워볼게임 But that’s not the case with Son Heung-min, who is very good with both feet.
In fact, Akanji made a crucial mistake that led to Son’s goal against Tottenham on March 15th. In the 41st minute of the second half, Akanji’s mistake left Son Heung-min one-on-one with the goalkeeper. Luckily for Akanji, substitute Stephan Ortega made the save to deny Son Heung-min the decisive goal.
If Son had scored,
It would have tied the game 1-1 with Tottenham and ended City’s title hopes. With Arsenal in the thick of the title race, it would have been a costly mistake for Akanji. Instead, the Gunners held on for a 2-0 victory, with Elling Holland’s brace setting the stage for the title.
“Usually, you try to use your strength to get them to one side and then you try to stop them from coming out from there,” Akanji continued, explaining his defensive technique, “and then you try to intercept the ball somehow, but you don’t make stupid fouls.”
“Otherwise, it puts them in a good position. So I try to draw them to one side and keep them there,” he added.
It’s clear to see how much of a threat Son is to opposing defenders. 바카라사이트 추천 Son has 17 goals and 10 assists in the league this season, the third time he has achieved 10-10 in his career. It’s the sixth best in Premier League history.