Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou hailed the impact of Heung-min Son after victory over Brighton.
Son laid on the injury-time winner for Brennan Johnson on the day.
Postecoglou said: "We were worried about fatigue, that's why we brought him on in the second half. He was ready to play, wanted to play. If you look, two of their games went to extra-time, last game was pretty draining as well. So the fact that we had options, if we were desperate he probably would have started. But we had other options, that meant we could protect him. I think it was better for him that he came on and played the minutes he did.
"Maybe the nation he plays for works against him but I think he's a world-class player. You look at his record in the Premier League, the toughest league in the world, his goal contributions irrespective of how the team's gone through the time he's been here have always been right up there.
"Even this year, before he left, I think he was probably the best attacking player in the competition, just my opinion obviously. Certainly he'd be up there. He's a world class player. I thought we did well to cover his absence. Richy obviously stepped up in terms of goal threat, and a few other players, but to have a world-class player for the run-in is brilliant for us."
