Unstoppable Kane shows why he’s England’s premier striker

Rob McCarthy

It was billed as the battle between Harry Kane and Romelu Lukaku, and while both players scored it was the England striker who lit up the match at White Hart Lane.

Spurs closed the gap to leaders Chelsea to seven points after recording a club record ninth successive home win as they beat Everton 3-2 in the Premier League on Sunday.

Kane’s opener showed everything that the striker is about, picking the ball from deep, turning and then unleashing a dipping thunderbolt from 25 yards which Joel Robles could not get near.

His second was all about opportunism as Morgan Schneiderlin was caught it possession and the striker was quickly picked out by Dele Alli before slotting past the advancing Robles.

Lukaku’s excellent finish gave the Toffees hope before a clever flick from Dele Alli and than a late Enner Valencia striker completed the scoring, but it was all about that man Kane again as Spurs continue to set the pace among the challengers to champions-elect Chelsea.

To be fair to Lukaku he was playing in a team that was set up to destroy and counter, while Spurs were on the front foot for the majority of the game and Kane was involved much more than his striking counterpart.

It’s the sign of a top striker, however, that Lukaku took his goal so clinically when he was largely anonymous in the game. That strike seeing the Belgian become Everton’s all-time leading scorer in the Premier League as a result.

 

But Sunday’s encounter was all about Man-of-the-Match Kane and how good Tottenham were – virtually unstoppable at home and brimming with confidence as we enter the business end of the season.

Kane could easily have had his fourth hat-trick of the season after squandering a couple of opportunities but his first touch, composure and shear will to win were all in evidence as Spurs won at a canter, despite the scoreline suggesting a close contest.

The switch to a back three has certainly made a huge difference to Tottenham’s creativity as it allows the dynamic full-backs to push on and means that they can get more bodies in and around Kane to affect the game.

Whenever Eric Dier, Toby Alderweireld and Vertonghen have all been fit, Maurico Pochettino has opted for that 3-5-2, which is built around the high press and dynamism in and out of possession.

To be fair to the Spurs chief, he could see very early on in the season that playing Dier and Victor Wanyama was too passive of a central midfield and since then Spurs have been simply outstanding.

Can they still win the league, well you have to say that it’s still Chelsea’s to throw away, but this Tottenham side is improving all the time and the experience of last season should stand them in good stead.

Rob McCarthy