But by fulltime on Saturday, it was the scoring feats of Tottenham’s No.10 that everyone was talking about.
Tottenham’s Harry Kane has notched up yet more records with his winning goal in a 1-0 Premier League victory over Wolves but manager Antonio Conte says England’s captain remains the ultimate team player.
Kane moved above Sergio Aguero into fourth on the list of all-time Premier League scorers with 185 goals and at the same time set a record in the competition for goals for a single team.
He also reached 250 in all competitions for Tottenham in Saturday’s victory.
The home crowd sang their usual refrain of “He’s one of our one” as Kane went through his post-match interview on the sun-kissed turf of Tottenham’s home stadium at the end.
They know that with Kane they have a chance to end their long wait for silverware stretching back to 2008.
Conte knows that too, but said that it is not just Kane’s goals that make him such a pivotal player.
(Photo by Craig Mercer/MB Media/Getty Images)
“Harry is a player who makes the difference, for his quality, for his ability. We’re talking about a really world-class striker who can be dangerous in all aspects on the pitch,” the Italian, whose side have seven points from three games despite not really hitting top gear, told reporters.
“For me, the big surprise about Harry is not only on the football aspect but the person. We’re talking about a really good person, a really good man.
“He’s always ready to help the team, to work for the team. Usually when you have this type of player, they can be a bit lazy without the ball. They like to play with the ball but without the ball (they think) ‘I don’t run because I have to be fresh when we have the ball’.
“This was a bit of a surprise with me, working with Harry. I know he reached another big achievement, a personal achievement.
“But we’re trying to work together, with the team and always with Harry to have not only personal achievements, but to try to have a big achievement together for the team and the club.”
Kane’s 64th-minute header was Tottenham’s 1000th home goal in the Premier League and earned them the points against a Wolves side who dominated before the break.
The 29-year-old also scored a last-gasp equaliser last week at Chelsea, when Spurs also struggled for long periods.
Conte conceded Tottenham’s first-half display against Wolves was sub-standard but whatever he said at halftime sank in as his side were far better after the interval.
Encouragingly for Tottenham, they have picked up seven points from three fixtures they managed zero from last season — a sign of a new-found resilience ingrained by Conte.
“Last season, probably this type of game you’re going to lose at the end,” he said.
“In fact, last season we lost at home against Southampton, at home against Wolverhampton and against Chelsea. Instead to get seven points showed that this team is improving in many aspects.”
But making it more difficult this season will be the form of Tottenham’s fierce rivals, Arsenal.
It’s three straight wins for the red-and-white half of north London after a polished 3-0 victory at Bournemouth, with playmaker Martin Odegaard scoring two goals in the first 11 minutes and centre back William Saliba adding a third from the edge of the penalty area.
Now, Arsenal – on a perfect nine points – and Spurs, on seven, are the current top two after three games.
Manchester City, who won their first two games, could break up the north London axis at the summit by beating Newcastle on Sunday.
Elsewhere in the English top-flight, these are already worrying times for Leicester — and not just because Brendan Rodgers’ team have yet to record a win after three games.
For the 2-1 home loss to Southampton, Rodgers left out Wesley Fofana completely from the matchday squad while the French centre back is being linked with a move to Chelsea.
Belgium midfielder Youri Tielemans, meanwhile, only started on the bench amid uncertainty over his future with less than a year left on his contract.
Leicester conceded two second-half goals to draw 2-2 at home to Brentford on the opening weekend and did the same to lose to Southampton, with substitute Che Adams scoring both of them – the second an acrobatic volley.
Fulham remain undefeated after beating Brentford 3-2 thanks to a 90th-minute header by Aleksandar Mitrovic, while the other promoted team, Nottingham Forest, were denied by a late Demarai Gray goal in a 1-1 draw at Everton.
Wilfried Zaha scored twice in Crystal Palace’s 3-1 win over Aston Villa to follow up his well-taken goal in the 1-1 draw at Liverpool on Monday.
Mitrovic and Leeds striker Rodrigo are the other players on three goals so far this campaign.
Villa have lost two of their first three games and manager Steven Gerrard appears to be unsure of his best team, having started with a different forward line in each match.
© AAP