Kane treble keeps Poch in title hunt
TOTTENHAM ..... 4 STOKE ............. 0 this display was a reminder that when they click, they can hit impressive heights.
Kane led the way, but for Alli this game also provided relief after his moment of madness against Gent that earned the midfielder the first red card of his career for an X-rated challenge.
That had prompted a debate about the 20-year-old’s temperament and his dodgy disciplinary record.
But Alli delivered the perfect response, dealing with the full-on attentions of Charlie Adam without reacting and finding himself on the spot to grab a goal.
By then Kane had ensured Tottenham would extend their current run to eight successive league wins at White Hart Lane. It was clear from the moment Christian Eriksen almost caught out keeper Lee Grant in the third minute that Stoke would struggle.
And the breakthrough came in the 14th minute when Kane pounced on a mistake by Ryan Shawcross to lash the ball home.
Spurs keeper Hugo Lloris was forced to make a smart reaction save to deny Peter Crouch but that was a rare moment of threat from Stoke.
And when Kane produced a stunning finish for his 32nd-minute second, there was never going to be a way back for the visitors.
Rolled
It was a goal straight off the training ground with Kane on the edge of the box. He was picked out by Eriksen’s corner and struck a powerful left-foot shot on the full past Grant.
Five minutes later he added his third after Adam had fouled Alli 30 yards out minutes after collecting a yellow card for a similar offence,
Eriksen rolled the ball to Kane whose low shot deflected beyond Grant off the wall.
Kane then showed his other side when he turned Bruno Martins Indi and raced into the Stoke area before squaring for Alli to slide in and complete a flawless first-half display. Spurs were cruising and Stoke shell-shocked, so the second half was always likely to be a sense of anti-climax. Eric Dier and Kane both brought fine saves from Grant but by then Tottenham’s work was done.