Son Heung-min has admitted he feels responsible for Antonio Conte's sacking by Tottenham.
The attacker has become the first Spurs player to react to Conte's departure from the Premier League side after 16 months in charge. The Italian was sacked by chairman Daniel Levy on Sunday night with his position having become untenable after he launched a furious rant following a draw at Southampton.
It still took eight days for Tottenham to decide to sack him, with a number of their players having been away with their national team. Son himself has been featuring for South Korea, scoring twice in the win over Colombia before playing all 90 minutes as they lost to Uruguay on Tuesday.
And in the aftermath of the defeat to the South Americans, Son has opened up on his feelings about Conte's exit. The attacker revealed his sadness at the Italian's sacking and admitted he felt partly responsible for it.
“I’m very sorry to him [Conte]. He is a world-class manager, we had a great journey together, I thank him a lot. I do not know how other players are thinking about him, but I’m sorry to him," he said.
“I should have shown more, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t help the team and I feel responsible as he left the club. He surely has great ability and experience as a coach and I’m sure he’ll have great success in his other career.
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“Coming back to Spurs, I wish to finish the rest of the season in a great way with my team-mates, for our club.”
Having won the Premier League's golden boot last season, Son has endured a disappointing campaign at Spurs this term. He has scored just six goals and notched only four assists in the top-flight, having only missed two of Tottenham's games.
Spurs will be hoping their star attacker enjoys an up-turn in fortunes under interim boss Cristian Stellini, who will take over for the rest of the season. A permanent replacement will be appointed in the summer.
Conte broke his own silence on the situation on Monday evening, through a social media post. Alongside several photos from his time at the club, the Italian took the opportunity to thank both the club and supporters.
"Football is passion. I would like to deeply thank everyone at SPURS who appreciated and shared my passion and my intense way of living football as a coach," Conte wrote as the caption on Instagram.
"A special thought to the Fans who always showed me support and appreciation, it’s been unforgettable to hear them singing my name. Our journey together has ended, I wish you all the best for the future."
