Kane delighted as Burnley treble puts Tottenham striker on brink of history

Harry Kane celebrated what he described as “a nice present” after his hat-trick gave Tottenham a 3-0 win over Burnley and ensured the striker equalled a Premier League record.

The England international’s seventh hat-trick of the year in all competitions secured three points for Spurs at Turf Moor and moved them above both Sean Dyche’s side and Arsenal into fifth in the Premier League table.

Kane’s treble took him to 36 league goals for the 2017, moving him level with the Premier League record for a calendar year set by Alan Shearer back in 1995.

A strike against Southampton at Wembley on Boxing Day will see Kane claim a slice of history and cement his place as a true star of England’s top flight.

The 24-year-old admitted the record has been on his mind but was just as thrilled with the victory, which came just a week after Tottenham suffered a 4-1 hammering by Manchester City.

Nice little Christmas present. Great win away from home.  #COYS pic.twitter.com/26TTvDSa5D

— Harry Kane (@HKane) December 23, 2017

“It’s a nice present!” he told BT Sport. “It was a tough game, it could have been a lot more than 3-0, we missed some good chances. It’s a great way to finish before Christmas.”

Asked about Shearer’s record, he said: “Obviously a few people have been thinking about it. Going into this game, I was hoping to get a couple to take into Southampton. It’s a great win for us and an important three points.

“You always want to finish a game off, especially away from home. Burnley have been doing great and we didn’t want to give them any incentive. Thankfully, the chances kept coming.”

There was controversy in the early stages when Dele Alli received only a yellow card for a lunging challenge on Charlie Taylor, before the midfielder then won the penalty from which Kane scored his first goal when he was brought down by Kevin Long.

The home fans spent much of the rest of the game targeting the 21-year-old but Kane felt both decisions were correct.

“I thought he played great,” said Kane of Alli. “The challenge, they both went for it and the penalty, from my point of view, was a penalty. Away from home, the fans are always going to get on someone’s back.”