Harry Kane‘s nights of waking up in a cold sweat when August comes around the corner are over.
The Tottenham striker scored the third goal to wrap up his side’s 3-1 win against Fulham at Wembley Stadium. He had never previously hit the back of the net in August for his club.
Lucas Moura gave the hosts the lead late in the first half before Aleksandar Mitrovic equalised early in the second.
Kieran Trippier’s free-kick gave Spurs the lead once more before Kane secured victory.
Here’s a closer look at Kane’s performance.
STATISTICS
Goals – 1
Assists – 0
Shots – 3
Shots on target – 1
Touches – 77
Passes – 53
Key passes – 3
Pass success – 79.3%
Dribbles – 3
Dispossessed – 3
30-SECOND REPORT
After a lacklustre display away to Newcastle United in the opening week of the 2018/19 Premier League, Kane showed signs of life in this encounter.
He was handed some support up front in the form of Lucas Moura and his overall involvement was more pronounced. After netting a goal that was disallowed and volleying an effort onto the crossbar, he finally broke the August curse with a composed finish.
The curse is lifted: Harry Kane.
GOT RIGHT
Link-up play – Kane performed his role as the focal point in attack admirably, holding the ball up well and linking play, even setting Christian Eriksen up inside the box for a shot that was blocked.
Scoring – It sounds simplistic, however it’s been anything but for Kane in August. With Erik Lamela running through the heart of Fulham, he peeled wide, took the pass in his stride and cut inside for a tidy finish.
GOT WRONG
Poor touch – There were signs of rustiness still and some of Kane’s touches were wayward. He miscontrolled more times than anyone other Spurs player (4).
Shooting – Given the dominance Spurs enjoyed, you’d think Kane would’ve tested the keeper a lot more. An in-form Kane peppers the opposition’s goal with shots. In fact, he refused to pull the trigger on one occasion, choosing to hit the deck for a soft penalty instead.
VERDICT
A much improved performance from the one he mustered last weekend. While not yet at his devastating best, he looked a lot sharper and didn’t tire as quickly this time. Most importantly, he got that elusive August goal and the monkey is now finally off his back. He will only improve in the coming weeks.
RATING: 7/10
Harry Kane opens his account for the season.
All statistics are compiled using whoscored.com