Harry Kane is now the leading Tottenham Hotspur’s joint all-time record goalscorer with the winner in his side’s 1-0 victory at Fulham in the Premier League on Monday.
Tottenham had been second-best in the first half at Craven Cottage but Kane produced a signature finish on the stroke of halftime to score his 266th goal for the Londoners.
Kane’s effort drew him at par with Jimmy Greaves (deceased) who scored 266 goals in 379 games. England skipper Kane reached the total in 415 match appearances.
Fulham was the better side until Kane’s right-footed finish with Harrison Reed, Aleksandar Mitrovic and Willian all going close to giving the hosts the much-needed lead.
Kane even had the chance to break the record after halftime but it went straight at Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno.
Victory spurred Tottenham’s top-four hopes, leaving them in fifth position with 36 points, three points behind Newcastle United and Manchester United who have both played a game less.
Fulham remains in seventh place with 31 points.
While Tottenham has been agreeably inconsistent of late, Kane remains the most reliable of goalscorers with Monday’s effort taking him to 16 league goals this season.
As well as being one goal away from surpassing Greaves, he needs just one more in the league to become only the third player to register 200 goals in the Premier League — joining Alan Shearer and Wayne Rooney.
“It was a tough game, a really important three points for us today after the last two results,” Kane told Sky Sports, referring to Tottenham’s defeats by Arsenal and Manchester City. “A tough week but a clean sheet and good 1-0 win.
“We wanted to get back to basics and clean sheet will be important if we want to stay by the Champions League spots.
“We wanted to be compact and suffer a bit in stages. Tonight was a good sign.”
Tottenham manager Antonio Conte praised his captain, referring to his game as playing with “a bit of a fever” and scoring a “fantastic goal.”
“He [Kane] was amazing. He scored a fantastic goal and the way he controlled the ball and hit it that way, only a world-class striker can do that,” Conte said.
“About the spirit that I spoke before, I want to underline that he played with a bit of a fever. He didn’t feel so good but he wanted to play because he understood the moment and it’s a point of reference for me, for us. We are talking about a player that has a fantastic ability. For sure I’d like for him to win something with Tottenham.”
It did not look promising for Tottenham in the early stages with Fulham, who could have gone fifth, in control.
Reed’s shot from close range was saved by Hugo Lloris who also blocked a free kick from Andreas Pereira.
Aleksandar Mitrovic headed an effort wide when well-placed and Tottenham were guilty of continually giving the ball away showing a gross lack of confidence.
But when Son Heung-min found Kane on the edge of the area in first-half stoppage time the striker only had one thing on his mind. A couple of touches earned him some space and he dispatched a right-foot shot inside the post.
Tottenham was far better in the second half although Fulham will wonder how they ended empty-handed.
