Harry Kane scored twice and set up Heung-Min Son for Tottenham's fourth goal as Antonio Conte's side thrashed Crystal Palace 4-0; Jamie Redknapp: "He was just incredible, not just his goals, his all-round play. It was a masterclass"
Thursday 5 January 2023 11:48, UK
Jamie Redknapp lauded Harry Kane's second-half "masterclass" and Graeme Souness tipped him to fire Tottenham to a top-four finish after he inspired them to a 4-0 win over Crystal Palace.
After another sluggish first-half performance from Antonio Conte's side, they exploded into life when Kane scored twice in the space of five minutes soon after the break, with Matt Doherty and a resurgent Heung-Min Son then extending their lead as they cut the gap to fourth-placed Manchester United to two points.
Kane's goals, on what was his 300th Premier League appearance, took him to 266 in all competitions, within two of Jimmy Greaves' Tottenham scoring record, and he also claimed the assist for the fourth with his ball over the top for Son.
"We said before the game that when you've got a player like Harry Kane you've always got a chance and that came to fruition there," said Sky Sports pundit Redknapp afterwards.
"He was just incredible, not just his goals, his all-round play. He held it up, brought people into play, his touch was exquisite. It was a masterclass second half and his second goal is as good as it gets.
"The touch and the finish is sublime and we've seen him do it time and time again. Just an incredible player."
Souness was similarly impressed by Kane's second goal, when the striker controlled Bryan Gil's pass inside the Palace box and fired an angled drive into the far corner.
"He's not looked at the goal or the goalkeeper, but he knows where the goal is because of the line on the six-yard box," said Souness. "He is a class act, the one English player who is truly world class for me.
"I think they will finish in the top four because they have him. Keep him fit. He is Mr Goals. And you've got a good chance of winning games if you've got him in your team."
Speaking on co-commentary, former striker Alan Smith added: "It didn't look good at half-time. You wondered how the second half, and Tottenham's season, would pan out.
"But when you've got a player like Harry Kane, who can do what he did, it makes the world of difference.
"Conte will just be hoping his centre forward can stay fit and the same applies to Son, because they can lead the charge against any quality of opposition. It's been a fantastic night for Tottenham and much needed."
Conte, meanwhile, backed Kane to break "every record" with his outstanding scoring feats but also talked up his all-round contribution.
"We are wasting time explaining the type of player he is," he said in his press conference. "We are talking about a really world-class striker, he's going to beat every record with the goals.
"For us he is an important point of reference not only for the goals but also the pitch. With Hugo, he is our captain, especially in the difficult moments, you know Harry is ready to fight, ready to help teammates, ready to solve the situation with goals, with assists.
"He faces every positive or negative situation always with great spirit and great character to overcome difficultly."
Son's goal was his first in eight Premier League games following a poor run of form and the South Korea forward hopes it will prove a pivotal moment in his season.
"It was about time!" he told Sky Sports. "It felt amazing. To be honest I felt really sorry for the team because I think they were expecting more than what I've done.
"I hope today was the turning point, getting back the confidence and I will continue to help the team."
Conte was delighted too, warmly embracing Son on the pitch following the final whistle and saying afterwards he hopes his goal serves as a confidence boost.
"I'm happy because our strikers scored, Harry scored twice and Sonny finally scored," he told Sky Sports.
"It was really important for him, because we are talking about a player who needs to score and feel confidence."
Redknapp added: "This is so important for Son. He relies on goals. Last year he got the Golden Boot with Mohamed Salah. This year it hasn't happened for him. This is only his fourth goal of the season.
"He needs more goals but this will give him so much belief. They've got some huge games coming up."
Antonio Conte was pleased to get the reaction he was looking for following the 2-0 loss to Aston Villa on New Year's Day which made it 10 consecutive games in which they had conceded the opening goal.
"It was a good reaction," he told Sky Sports. "It's not easy to win against Crystal Palace away. We are talking about a really good team, well organised.
"After the first half it was in the balance, then in the second half we exploited chances to score and then we finish with a good final result.
"The message [at half-time] was to continue to play, because we started the game very well and then in the second part of the first half we lost a bit of the possession. I think we played a good game, we were well organised without the ball, we tried to press high.
"Now we have to continue to try and improve.
"Today I'm happy because in this period we are playing with many young players. I had this opportunity in this period during the World Cup with these young players to work with these young players and improve, tactically and physically."
Crystal Palace boss Patrick Vieira bemoaned his side's lack of cutting edge and felt their lack of experience was costly.
"It was a tough night in the end," he told Sky Sports. "Conceding four goals is not something pleasant at all, but again, it doesn't reflect the quality of the game we played today. We deserved more, especially from the first half with those chance we created.
"Of course, when they scored that first goal, it became really difficult for us. When those players have a little bit of space, they can hurt any team, but the way they managed the game and those difficult periods they had shows a huge difference between the two teams. The experience was a massive factor on the game today.
"We weren't clinical enough, we didn't take our chance well enough. We had a couple of passes to put players in a better position to score. Our last ball in the final third wasn't good enough and Lloris makes a couple of important saves.
"But we were brave, we showed quality and at the same time, the fact we concede four goals shows there are a lot of things we need to improve.
"We have young players in our squad and that kind of game have to be managed better. The experience allowed them to be strong and to score those goals in a period where they were dominant. There are a lot of things to take from that game.
"But you have to give credit to Tottenham because they looked solid, in control and they're waiting for their moment to take these chances. With the quality they have, they don't need to create a lot to score.
"But I believe that the 4-0 is hard for my players, is hard for the club. But we still have a lot to take from that."
