Kane breaks records with another hat-trick

Spurs striker sets new Premier League best

LONDON: Harry Kane set a new record for the most Premier League goals in a year and will finish as Europe’s leading scorer for 2017 after the Tottenham Hotspur forward bagged a hat-trick against Southampton yesterday.

Kane’s 22nd-minute header at Wembley was his 37th goal of the year, moving him past Alan Shearer’s previous Premier League record, which was set when he played for Blackburn Rovers in 1995.

But Kane was not happy to settle for that milestone and scored again with a close-range finish in the 39th minute and again on 67 minutes.

His third goal took him to 56 for club and country in 2017 — lifting him above Barcelona’s Lionel Messi to become Europe’s top scorer over the past 12 months in the five major countries (England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France). Messi, who has 54 goals this year, cannot catch Kane as Barcelona do not play again until 2018.

Kane admitted he was keen to break Shearer’s record after he moved level with the former England star with a hat-trick in Tottenham’s win at Burnley on Saturday.

The 24-year-old reached his landmark 37th goal in 36 league appearances, while Shearer played 42 times when he set the old record with 36 goals.

Shearer was quick to congratulate Kane, tweeting: “You’ve had a magnificent 2017 @ HKane. You deserve to hold the record of most @premierleague goals in a calendar year. Well done and keep up the good work.”

Kane scored 21 league goals from January to May last season and has 18 this term.

He netted 20 times in home games and 19 in away fixtures, while May was his highest scoring month with eight goals.

The England international now has 24 goals for Tottenham in all competitions this season.

Other high-scoring Premier League stars over a calendar year include Robin van Persie, who notched 35 for Arsenal in 2011, and Thierry Henry, who struck 34 times for the north London club in 2004.

Ruud van Nistelrooy scored 30 for Manchester United in 2003 and Les Ferdinand hit the same tally for QPR and Newcastle United in 1995.