Son Heung-min's participation in the 2022 World Cup is up in the air at present as he waits to undergo surgery to stabilise a fracture around his left eye. Starting in Tottenham's vital Champions League match against Marseille on Tuesday evening, the attacker departed the field after only 29 minutes following an aerial collision with Chancel Mbemba.
Competing for the ball, Son received a blow to his face and he immediately went to ground. Far from steady on his feet as he made his way down the tunnel with one of the club's medical staff, Davinson Sanchez raced from the substitutes' bench to help his teammate.
Twenty-four hours on from sustaining the injury, Tottenham confirmed in a statement late on Wednesday evening that the 30-year-old will now have surgery and then commence rehabilitation with the club's medical staff.
READ MORE: Tottenham's Son Heung-min to undergo eye fracture surgery putting South Korea World Cup in doubt
"We can confirm that Heung-Min Son will undergo surgery to stabilise a fracture around his left eye," read the statement. "The South Korea international suffered the injury during the first half of Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League victory at Olympique Marseille.
"Following surgery, Son will commence rehabilitation with our medical staff and we shall update supporters further in due course."
A major blow for Tottenham ahead of their final three games before the World Cup with the team already short on attacking options due to Dejan Kulusevski and Richarlison's injuries, the news about Son has also raised question marks about whether he will be in a position to play for South Korea at the World Cup. With the tournament now just under three weeks away, all in Korea will have their fingers crossed that he makes a swift recovery and can help his country progress from Group H.
What should give him hope that he can still play a part in Qatar is Kevin De Bruyne's recovery from a similar problem 18 months ago. Lining up for Man City in the Champions League final against Chelsea in Porto, the midfielder left the pitch in tears at the hour mark after a nasty clash with Antonio Rudiger.
Suffering an acute fracture of the nose and an orbital fracture to his left eye socket, as a result, De Bruyne's participation at Euro 2020 was a major talking point with Belgium's opener two weeks on from the European final. Named in the squad but missing out in their first Group B match against Russia, he returned to the pitch five days later as he came on at the break and contributed with a goal and assist to inspire his country to come from behind and seal a 2-1 win over Denmark.
With De Bruyne making his comeback 19 days after his injury in the Champions League final, Son has slightly longer with South Korea's Group H opener against Uruguay set for Thursday, November 24. That will be 23 days since sustaining the fracture around his left eye, but his participation in the match will all depend on the success of the surgery and how he reacts.
Not an ideal situation for him to be in at present with the World Cup on the horizon and Tottenham facing some very important games, De Bruyne's recovery will give him plenty of inspiration as the Man City ace demonstrated that a quick return is more than possible. The race is now on for Son as he looks to represent his country at a third World Cup.
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