KANE GETS FULL SET
TOTTENHAM STAR HAS NOW SCORED AGAINST EVERY PREMIER LEAGUE OPPONENT
Harry Kane ended his Cardiff hoodoo as Tottenham stayed in the Premier League title picture with a 3-0 win in the Welsh capital.
Kane had previously scored at least once against 27 of the 28 Premier League opponents he had faced, with Cardiff the solitary team he had failed to net against in three previous encounters.
But Kane needed only two and a half minutes to put that record straight on New Year’s Day, and further goals from Christian Eriksen and Son Heung-min provided a swift panacea to the pain of losing 3-1 at home to Wolves on Saturday.
The victory eased Spurs back above Manchester City into second place and six points adrift of leaders Liverpool.
Tottenham can now relax and watch the showdown between City and Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium tomorrow, with Mauricio Pochettino’s side believing they can still force their way into title contention in 2019.
Mauricio Pochettino praised his Tottenham players, who banished the memories of Saturday’s shock home defeat to Wolves.
“I think it was so important (to win) and build another positive run,” Pochettino said.
“It was so important for our confidence, because in three days we are going to start another competition, the FA Cup.
“Then we are going to play the Carabao Cup semi-final against Chelsea.
“It was so important to start the new year with a victory, away from home in a very difficult place, against a team like Cardiff who came from beating Leicester.
“They came with massive confidence in the way they played the last game and it was a massive victory for us.
“It is three points that make us believe a little bit more in our possibility to be in a very good position in the table.”
The Spurs boss said he was delighted with the way his players handled their fourth league game in 10 days.
“Us and Everton, we were the two teams who suffered the most difficult fixtures in that period,” Pochettino said after Spurs had returned a nine-point haul from their four festive games.
“So, of course, I congratulate the players because the effort was fantastic.
“I was very pleased with the performance and we were so clinical from the beginning. To be 3-0 up after 20 minutes was fantastic for us and then we dominated the game.”