Tottenham captain Son Heung-min said he felt fit and ready to fire his side up the table after they came from behind to dispatch London rivals West Ham 4-1 on Saturday.
The Spurs skipper has missed the last three weeks with a hamstring injury and also sat out South Korea's recent Asian World Cup 2026 qualifiers to concentrate on his recovery.
The break certainly seems to have done the trick as he produced a man-of-the-match display capped by the fourth goal as his side roared back after falling behind to Mohammed Kudus' first-half opener at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Dejan Kulusevski levelled before the break and the hosts were at their scintillating best afterwards. Yves Bissouma slotted home to make it 2-1 in the 52nd minute and Jean-Clair Todibo put through his own net before Son wrapped up the scoring on the hour mark with a trademark left-footed finish.
"To be back on the pitch is a joy, playing with my teammates in a beautiful stadium is one of my favourite things - especially when you get the result," said Son, 32, afterwards.
"When we conceded the first goal he [manager Ange Postecoglou] wasn't very happy. He talked about protecting our goal like a home. But generally altogether with the performance I am very happy.
"When I get the ball I try and find the best solution. In a one-on-one situation I'm very on it and most like to be in this situation.
"[The support is] incredible, I have been missing this support for three weeks and I didn't go to the national team. Playing in front of these fans is a huge honour and I want to give them something back.
"Sometimes injury time [out] can be good, we have such a busy time, that two or three weeks was perfect to recharge myself and today I was feeling really, really good.
"It's entertaining [football under Postecoglou] but also a lot of pressure. The winger is expected to create chance and get goals. I think it is a lot of joy and pressure which is where we should be."
West Ham had headed into the international break after a 4-1 victory of their own, over Ipswich Town, and almost went ahead in the 11th minute. Jarrod Bowen ran away from Micky van de Ven and squared for Kudus, but his strike was tipped over by Guglielmo Vicario.
It was a warning that Tottenham would not heed. Destiny Udogie was at fault after he failed to clear his lines, allowing Bowen to race beyond him and tee up Kudus, who scuffed an effort into the bottom corner in the 18th minute.
Postecoglou could only shake his head on the touchline, but his team responded impressively as Son's effort deflected wide and Lucas Paqueta almost turned Udogie’s cross into his own net.
The momentum had shifted and Tottenham did level after 36 minutes as James Maddison carried the ball before finding Kulusevski, who cut inside and rifled a left-footed strike in off the post from 16 yards.
Pape Sarr was sent on for Maddison at half-time, and with Postecoglou’s words still ringing in the ears of his players, they started with a bang.
Udogie saw a shot deflected over but then fed Bissouma to roll home for Spurs’ second in the 52nd minute. It was 3-1 four minutes later when Kulusevski laid back for Son, who had a low effort saved by Areola, which deflected off West Ham defender Todibo and crossed the line.
Spurs were not finished there and Son grabbed his ninth goal against the Hammers on the hour mark to cap a three-goal spell in eight minutes.
There was still time for the afternoon to get worse for the Hammers as Kudus was sent off in the 86th minute by referee Andrew Madley, following a VAR review, for violent conduct after he shoved Sarr in the face.
