English Football
Kane equals Greaves’ record in Fulham win
Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane scored against Fulham in the Premier League on Monday to equal the club’s all-time scoring record of 266 goals held by the late Jimmy Greaves.
The England forward fired a right-foot shot on the turn to give his side the lead on the stroke of halftime.
Greaves played for Spurs from 1961 until 1970, while Kane made his debut for the north London club in August 2011.
Kane’s 266 goals have arrived in 415 appearances while Greaves scored 266 in 379 games for the north London club.
Fulham had plenty of chances to score before Kane’s opener with Hugo Lloris keeping out Bobby Decordova-Reid’s long-range drive and Harrison Reed’s snap-shot.
But this is now a second defeat in a row and a missed chance to go above Spurs into fifth place.
The game had kicked off 18 minutes late following travel problems for fans in the area and then issues with referee Paul Tierney’s communication devices.
Big night for Kane and Spurs
It has felt inevitable for a long time that Kane would become Spurs’ top scorer if he did not move to another club first.
His 199th Premier League goal for Spurs in exactly 300 games means he has matched that 266-goal Greaves record, which stood for 53 years.
It was an expert Kane strike, taking Son Heung-min’s pass with his back to goal, turning a defender and then picking his spot from outside the box.
It was a much-needed goal for his club too.
Spurs had only won once in the Premier League since 12 November, a run that has raised a lot of questions about Conte’s future. In nine of their previous 10 league games, they conceded two or more goals. “This is an average like a team that is fighting for the relegation zone,” the boss said before this game.
Spurs have started so many games slowly this season, and this match was no exception. They did not get going until the 30th minute and could easily have trailed before Kane’s opener.
The second half was better, though, and Kane headed at Leno and then hammered a shot wide late on.
Lloris, who conceded six goals in his past two games – including his own goal against Arsenal – kept a much-needed clean sheet with five saves.
Fulham still flying despite loss
Consecutive defeats for surprise European chasers Fulham have come after they won five in a row. They should not be concerned, though, as those losses were against two of the only six teams in the country above them.
Marco Silva’s side were unlucky to lose to Newcastle and were narrowly edged out here by one of the greatest strikers in English football history.
As well as saved first-half chances for Decordova-Reid, Reed and Willian, Aleksandar Mitrovic headed on to the roof of the net and Manor Solomon’s curling effort was tipped wide by Lloris.
They had a good crack at it in six minutes of injury time but fell just short.
