Tottenham Hotspur didn't just lose to Arsenal in their latest North London derby; they also lost South Korean star Son Heung-min to a hamstring injury.

Son pulled up clutching his left hamstring in the 19th minute of a 2-1 loss to Arsenal at Emirates Stadium in London on Sunday (local time). The match was scoreless as Son walked off the pitch, and Tottenham failed to stay in front after Erik Lamela put them on the board in the 33rd minute. Arsenal tied things up late in the first half, and Alexandre Lacazette scored the winner on a penalty in the 64th minute.

The severity of Son's injury wasn't immediately clear, but any absence by the high-scoring South Korean attacker is a major blow to Tottenham's top-four aspirations.

Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho said after the match that he didn't know how long Son would be sidelined.

"Muscular is always not easy. He's a guy that normally he recovers very well from any kind of injury," Mourinho said. "And that's football. That's the accumulation of matches. And when you are in so many competitions, some players have more minutes than others, which is normal, something that can happen."

Sunday's loss left Tottenham in seventh on 45 points, six behind fourth-ranked Chelsea but with one match in hand.

Son hitting the shelf is also devastating news to the South Korean national team ahead of a much-anticipated, March 25 friendly match against Japan.

Head coach Paulo Bento is scheduled to announce his roster for that contest Monday. The Korea Football Association (KFA) said last week that it had contacted foreign clubs about releasing their Korean players for the occasion. Due to temporary FIFA rule tweaks brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, clubs aren't obligated to make international players available for friendlies, depending on travel restrictions in place. (Yonhap)