Former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino says that if he had kept Heung-Min Son from the Asian Games last season, the player would have left.

The South Korean star was determined to represent his nation during the tournament, even if it meant missing out on club games.

And Pochettino admits it was a blow to lose Son, but says that it was not something he could have prevented.

"With Harry Kane injured, Son not playing the first few months because of the Asian Games, no one talks about that," Pochettino told the High Performance Podcast.

"Today, Sonny is at Tottenham because we allowed him to go and play two competitions that weren't compulsory, not being selfish and saying, 'No, Sonny needs to stay here'.

"Because of the club. If not, two years and you need to stop the contract with Son.

"No one says anything about that. It was our decision to provide him the time to go."