Tottenham star Son Heung-min has received an apology from team-mate Rodrigo Bentancur after the Uruguay midfielder made an ill-advised 'joke' about the South Korea forward’s appearance. The two players have been colleagues in north London since Spurs signed Bentancur from Juventus at the start of 2022.

Bentancur is preparing to represent his country at this summer’s Copa America, which is set to get underway in the USA on June 20.

But during an interview, which has been released on social media, he made comments about Son. And after a backlash from fans, Bentancur has reached out to the former Bayer Leverkusen ace.

“Sony brother! I apologise to you for what happened, it was just a very bad joke!” wrote the 26-year-old on Instagram.

“You know what, I love you, and I would never disrespect you or hurt you or anyone else. I love you brother.”

Bentancur endured an injury-hit season last time around and was only able to start 13 Premier League matches. Son, meanwhile, featured 35 times in the top-flight and bagged 17 goals and 10 assists as the Lilywhites finished fifth in the table.

Bentancur spent nearly nine months on the sidelines between February and October last year after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament. And he was then struck down with another knee injury following a rash tackle by Aston Villa defender Matty Cash in November.

And discussing his recovery from the two injuries in March, he told Sky Sports: “[After the first injury] I was still on the same timetable as my team-mates. I tried to stay as close as possible, to follow what they were doing, above all because of the new manager and coaching staff.

“It was a big change from our previous style of play. Remember, I didn't get a pre-season. I missed his first six months in charge. That's why I was keen to be there, to see how the new manager worked, to study his system of play and prepare myself for coming back.

“The feeling of stepping on the pitch again was special. It was incredible to be able to enjoy it with our people.

“[Then with the second injury] they told me there was damage to all four ligaments. The physios here are amazing and they looked after me so well, as they did after the first injury. We worked every day. I barely had a break.

“I tried to get back as quickly as possible because I knew the team had a lot of injuries already. My team-mates needed me to be there and help them. I did everything I could. Fortunately, I was able to get back much earlier than expected.”