Harry Kane didn’t score against Sunderland, taking his run of matches for Tottenham Hotspur without a goal this season to five. Inevitably it was pointed out and, equally inevitably, his fans produced the fact that he didn’t score in the league until November last season and he still ended up with 21 for the season.
However much the role of the striker has evolved, goals will always be part of what he’s expected to deliver, and if he isn’t scoring them it will be particularly noticeable in a team playing as Tottenham are at the moment. In four of their five games so far, Spurs have had more shots on target than their opponent (in the other one, against Stoke City, they had the same number), but they’ve won only one of them, Sunday’s match against Sunderland.
But that’s not necessarily to say that Kane is playing badly. He did slice one decent chance on the volley wide against Sunderland, but equally it was him dropping off, receiving the ball and laying it off to Erik Lamela that led to Ryan Mason’s 82nd-minute winner.
Mauricio Pochettino, certainly, didn’t seem overly concerned. “I expect him to have another season like the last one - you must remember he didn't score for the first two months last year,” the Tottenham manager said. “I'm very happy with him. Harry gives his best for the team and only needs time to score again. I'm sure the goals will arrive. He's still very confident and was very happy in the changing room because we have a collective mentality.”
His statistics for this season measure up pretty well to last season – in all but that vital one of goals. He averages 3.4 shots per game this season as opposed to 3.3 last. His pass success rate is equally similar. His aerials won have dropped, but only by 20% and that could just as easily be to do with a slight change in Spurs’ style of play as anything to do with Kane himself.
Key passes, meanwhile, have doubled, suggesting that he is spending more time outside the box, looking to link play. Given how one-dimensional Spurs could be at times last season, that’s a very positive sign – and it gives weight to Pochettino’s claim about the collective mentality. Kane’s not just a goalscorer – although he contributed only four assists last season – he is also capable of work outside the box. It’s notable too that he’s making more tackles and clearances than he did last season, an indication of the work he’s doing in deeper positions.
Spurs’ issue then is for others to start scoring. Son Heung-Min got in the low double figures in each of the last three seasons in the Bundesliga, first for Hamburg and then for Bayer Leverkusen, and he should offer goals cutting in from that right flank, although his debut at Sunderland was less than stellar. When Christian Eriksen returns from injury, he will bring greater creativity – and he scored 10 himself last season. And Nacer Chadli scored 11 last season. In theory, Spurs now have a front four all of whom are capable of getting into double figures. If they get anywhere close to that, Kane doesn’t need to score 21.
Kane’s dribbling more this season but, strangely, has been fouled less, but the one statistic that perhaps does offer cause for concern is how often he’s lost the ball with poor first touches – 33% more than last season. Again, there’s no great reason for panic yet and it may in part be to do with the service in to him, but he needs to bring that figure down.
But that is outweighed by the quality of his two finishes for England, both clinically taken – one a deft lift over the keeper; the other a firm first-time clip. Both suggested a player who is confident and in form. There’s no reason to doubt Pochettino when he says that, even with Kane’s enhanced link-up play, the goals will come.
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