KANE ABLE TO DELIVER Captain marvel still man for big moment
HARRY KANE would usually be drowning in praise after eight goals in nine Premier League games at the start of a season.
Especially with a World Cup hurtling into view.
However, Erling Haaland’s freakish start to life at Manchester City, where he has scored 15 goals in nine top-flight matches, means these are anything but normal times on the goalscoring front.
But Kane still deserves credit for a cracking start.
And if he keeps firing them in at this rate then – injuries permitting – it will not be long after he returns from Qatar that he becomes his club’s all-time leading goalscorer.
The first-half header he scored against Brighton, the only goal of the game, means he has now scored 256 for Spurs in all competitions.
That puts him just 10 behind Jimmy Greaves’s mark and, sooner rather than later, he will finally move beyond it.
It can seem, at the moment, as if every goal Kane scores these days means something.
And while no records fell yesterday, it was fitting that at the end of an emotional week for Tottenham, in which the club lost its fitness coach Gian Piero Ventrone, boss Antonio Conte, a good friend, was the one who gave his side a much-needed win.
They came into this game after back-to-back disappointments of the defeat by Arsenal in the North London derby last Saturday and a dull goalless draw in Frankfurt in midweek.
Conte changed things up to start with the 3-5-2 formation for the first time this season, with Matt Doherty, Ben Davies and Ryan Sessegnon coming into the team, preferring the line-up to his usual 3-4-3. The extra man in midfield certainly helped against a Brighton side who started life under new coach Roberto De Zerbi brightly with a 3-3 draw at Liverpool last weekend.
It was impressive as it was the Italian manager’s first home game since replacing Graham Potter.
Yesterday was not all new for De Zerbi, given compatriot Conte was in the other technical area.
But the fact this was his fourth defeat in five managerial meetings with him – the other game ended a draw – meant it was a familiar outcome.
Spurs were the more dominant team in the first half an hour and
might have taken the lead before they did.
Doherty arrived at pace at the far post to meet Sessegnon’s deep cross on the half-volley, but he drilled it into the ground and Heung-min Son shot wildly over from outside the box.
Rodrigo Bentancur then struck a fierce shot which forced Seagulls keeper Robert Sanchez to make a good save.
It was from the resulting corner that Son’s initial cross was headed only as clear as the impressive Spurs midfielder Pierre-emile Hojbjerg – and he returned the ball to the South Korean.
Sonny’s second cross was more accurate and Kane glanced the ball home with a cute header falling away from goal on 22 minutes.
By the end of the half, Brighton were unlucky not to have pulled level through some good pressure with Hugo Lloris needing to save fierce drives from Moises Caicedo and Danny Welbeck.
Although, after the break, Spurs were back on the front foot and it took a good tackle from Lewis Dunk to deny Son a goalscoring opportunity.
Kane then got the better of the Brighton skipper but dragged his effort across Sanchez’s goal.
And the England and Spurs skipper then sent another glancing header, from a Son free-kick this time, past an upright.
Conte knew his team needed another goal to make things comfortable and when he replaced former Brighton favourite Yves Bissouma, to a mixture of boos and cheers, with Richarlison, his intent was clear.
The former Chelsea boss was raging, though, when some sloppy defending created an opening for Welbeck but he scuffed the shot wide.
It was the story of the home side’s night in the final third – and, despite some late pressure, Tottenham held on.