Harry Kane’s stunning September continued as he added two more goals to his growing collection and handed Huddersfield their first hammering of the season.
After bidding farewell to his customary barren August, Kane has now scored 13 times in his last eight games for club and country, clinically finishing a counter-attack in the ninth minute then bending home left-footed with a cracker from 20 yards.
Ben Davies netted in between, a deft touch over Jonas Lossl to cap a silky passing move, and substitute Moussa Sissoko capped a bad day for the Terriers, making it 4-0 in injury-time.
Harry Kane. Who else? Tottenham’s superstar and a match-winner to rival any of the Premier League’s collected talent. Kane never once looked like missing when offered the chance to open the scoring on the break, and then created and finished his second with assertive brilliance.
The only real surprise was that he did not manage to grab his seventh hat-trick of the calendar year. When two goals feels like an opportunity missed, you know you have something special.
This is getting a little silly now. I make that 16 goals in @HKane‘s last 7 away games. That is mental arithmetic and actually mental.
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) September 30, 2017
Kane’s Spurs predecessor, Gary Lineker, is in awe of the England striker’s productivity on the road.
Dele Alli is a wonderful, instinctive player but among his many laudable qualities is a tendency to hit the deck too easily, particularly inside the box. He was booked here for taking a tumble in the opposition area and it is not the first time. A caution for simulation against Fiorentina saw him banned for a Europa League knockout clash with Borussia Dortmund and he saw yellow for the same reason in a match against Manchester United.
He has also been accused of going to ground softly in games against Bayer Leverkusen, Swansea and during England’s Euro 2016 defeat by Iceland. It is a theme he needs to put to bed.
Huddersfield came into this match with a defensive record bettered only by the title-chasing Manchester sides, having conceded only three times in six matches.
That number had already doubled by the 24th minute, as Spurs finally sowed the seeds of doubt in a backline hitherto expertly marshalled by Christopher Schindler and Mathias Jorgensen.
Having kicked off with a goal difference of plus two, one half against Mauricio Pochettino’s men was enough to send them back into negative territory.
HUDDERSFIELD TOWN
Jonas Lossl: 5 (out of 10)
Tommy Smith: 6
Mathias Jorgensen: 5
Christopher Schindler: 6
Chris Lowe: 5
Jonathan Hogg: 6
Aaron Mooy: 5
Elias Kachunga: 5
Tom Ince: 6
Rajiv van La Parra: 5
Laurent Depoitre: 6
Substitutes
Scott Malone (for Lowe): 5
Philip Billing (for Mooy): 6
Dean Whitehead (for Hogg): 6
TOTTENHAM
Hugo Lloris: 6
Toby Alderweireld: 7
Davinson Sanchez: 7
Jan Vertonghen: 7
Kieran Trippier: 8
Ben Davies: 8
Eric Dier: 7
Harry Winks: 8
Christian Eriksen: 8
Dele Alli: 7
Harry Kane: 9
Substitutes
Moussa Sissoko (for Eriksen): 7
Kyle Walker-Peters (for Trippier): 6
Son Heung-min (for Kane): 5
Swansea v Huddersfield (Premier League, October 14)
Tottenham v Bournemouth (Premier League, October 14)