Kane proud of Tottenham response to ´embarrassing´ European exit

Harry Kane acknowledged Tottenham’s Europa League defeat to Dinamo Zagreb was “embarrassing” but the striker was delighted with their response at Aston Villa.

After losing a north London derby to Arsenal last weekend, Spurs crashed out of Europe in midweek, going down 3-0 in Croatia after winning the first leg 2-0.

They became the first English team since Manchester City in 2016-17, against Monaco, to be eliminated after claiming a two-goal lead from the first leg.

Jose Mourinho and his Tottenham players were critical of their own performance in the aftermath but victory at Villa got them back on track.

Kane played a part in the opener for strike partner Carlos Vinicius, netting his first Premier League goal, before a penalty – won and converted by the England captain – took the Spurs talisman to 30 goal involvements in the competition this season.

“Massively [important],” Kane told Sky Sports of the win. “The past couple of games have not been good enough in all areas really, so we knew we had to bounce back.

“Just before the international break as well, we didn’t want to go away with three losses or two losses and a draw.

“We knew we needed to win. The boys put in a great shift and we deserved it.”