Kane seals it for Spurs with his 250th goal
Brazil’s Ronaldo watches milestone
AS the greatest striker at the turn of the millennium watched on in the stands, how fitting it was that Harry Kane put on a show to further his case as the greatest No 9 currently walking the planet.
England’s captain doesn’t have the iconic haircut or Samba-style skills of Brazilian Ronaldo but he is a complete modern-day forward with the numbers to back it up.
This was his 250th goal for Tottenham, and his 185th in the Premier League to go past Sergio Aguero into fourth on the all-time list, three behind Andy Cole in third. He also overtook Manchester City legend Aguero for the most goals scored for one club.
But perhaps more importantly for him and Tottenham, the goal came after a far from polished display from both Kane and Spurs.
This is what the greatest strikers do: impact games in which they’ve had little service. And this is what the greatest teams do: grind out wins even when not at their best.
But the England striker is keeping his feet on the ground, only taking things one game at a time. It’s a team game, after all.
Kane said: ‘It’s been a fantastic nine or 10 years in the Premier League. Hopefully many more years to go. I always love scoring.
‘The most important thing is winning games. Credit to the boys, they dug deep. We need to start games better. We must improve. But the sign of a good team is winning when you don’t play at your best.’
So are Tottenham genuine title contenders? Let’s not get carried away, but the early signs are promising. But the main takeaway is this. Would Tottenham have won this match in the pre-Antonio Conte era? Maybe, but nine times out of 10 almost certainly not.
Spurs have put in a few performances each season in the last decade where they looked like they could beat any team in the division. But then campaigns have been pockmarked with sloppy dropped points against mid-table teams.
They’ve come from behind to beat Southampton and now toppled a decent Wolves side — two teams who won here last season. So that’s six points gained, plus another in a sub-par performance at Chelsea.
‘Battle of the Bridge II’ talk perhaps distracted from that display last week and this was another far from their best, but it will do, and it sent them momentarily top of the table.
Whether they can challenge Manchester City and Liverpool’s duopoly on the division is a huge question but so far, so good.
Conte was brought in to make Spurs contenders when the big games rolled around. The Italian recognises how important Kane is to that goal, saying: ‘I know he reached another big personal achievement, but we’re trying to work together, with the team and always with Harry to have not only personal achievements, like last season for example when Son was top scorer in the league, but to try to have a big achievement together for the team and the club.
‘I think every single player is ready to exchange a personal achievement to reach a trophy. We’re working on this aspect. The path is difficult, the path is long, but we have to try to do this.
‘But Harry is a player who has to make the difference, for his quality, for his ability. We’re talking about a world-class striker who can be dangerous in all aspects on the pitch.’
Kane’s decisive goal will not be one for his growing archives but in many ways it was typical of him. A quick search through the memory recalls a similar decisive back-post header in Russia against Tunisia, and one to win a North London derby. As Ronaldo in the stands was so good at, Kane has that knack of ghosting into the right place at the right time to score.
Wolves were the better team for the first hour, with Spurs mustering just one shot in the first half to the away team’s 11. New signing Goncalo Guedes looked sharp for Wolves and had a couple of halfchances including a glanced header, while Pedro Neto should have done better when he snatched at a loose ball in the box.
‘We played very well against this fantastic team and top manager,’ said Wolves boss Bruno Lage. ‘The first half was very good and we controlled the game.’
Kane agreed: ‘Credit to Wolves, they made it difficult. In the second half we came out with intensity. We created chances and pressed better. We deserved the goal.’
Ivan Perisic made his first start for Spurs, the Croat playing high and virtually as a fourth attacker in a 4-2-4 shape in possession.
As Spurs looked lethargic and slow in attacking situations, Perisic used an injury stoppage to coach a ball boy, gesticulating at the young lad to give him the ball quicker.
‘Today I saw the Ivan I know from Inter,’ said Conte, adding that he is helping mentor young left-back Ryan Sessegnon, who was unlucky to miss out today.
Perisic ran in behind without supply, but looked good when he did get the ball and floated in some
inviting crosses, one of which Kane forced Jose Sa into a smart save. But that was their only attempt of the half, as groans were heard around the stadium.
‘We had a time in between halves to analyse, and then we played with much more energy, intensity and put them under pressure,’ added Conte.
Tottenham came out swinging and hit the woodwork twice early in the second half. Kane was denied by the crossbar and Son Heung-min rattled the post from close range.
And just as at Chelsea last week, Spurs’ decisive moment came from a set-piece, as Perisic flicked a header on to Kane to cushion the ball into an empty net.
In a sport increasingly dominated by fine margins, Conte’s side can thank Gianni Vio for those two goals. The Italian set-piece coach also worked for European champions Italy under Roberto Mancini and has been working hard on the training ground to improve Spurs’ dead-ball potency.
That attention to detail sums up Conte’s side. ‘Last season, this type of game we might have lost,’ added the Italian. And that’s at least six points gained already on last term.
As for Kane, best No 9 on the planet? Messrs Lewandowski, Benzema and Haaland might disagree. Best in Premier League history? Well the stats do not lie — carry on like this, and he will certainly be up there.
Only Alan Shearer, Wayne Rooney and Cole stand above him in the all-time Premier League scorers chart. Keep an eye over your shoulders, chaps.