What a first half! – Record-breaking Kane lauds Tottenham display

The 23-year-old striker has scored an incredible 17 Premier League goals in 21 appearances this season after bagging a hat-trick against Stoke on Sunday.

The England man secured that milestone inside the quarter of an hour mark but it was his second of the game – a sensational volley – that had Twitter in raptures.

Kane led the way, but for Alli this game also provided relief after his moment of madness against Gent that earned the midfielder the first half red card of his career for an X-rated challenge.

Kane is the first Tottenham player since Jimmy Greaves to net 20 goals or more in three successive seasons and Pochettino says he is already taking on legendary status. It’s a big game against Middlesbrough and we need to be significantly better than we were.

It is 56 years since Tottenham Hotspur were English champions and even their most optimistic followers can not realistically expect them to bridge a 10-point gap at the top of the table with Chelsea. It was a good response from the team.

While their title ambitions are slim at best, the race for the Champions League spots is very much in the balance and with all their rivals not playing on the weekend, Spurs needed to make a statement at White Hart Lane. It should not be very hard for them as they are in good home form and are the only team apart from Chelsea to not have lost or drawn even one of their last five home games. I would give any of those players a rating higher than two.

“So he’s doing very well and we’re really pleased with what he’s showing”.

Diego Costa scored the third goal for Chelsea to ensure the league leaders’ three points against relegation-threatened Swansea City.

“Harry has the profile to be a legend (at Tottenham)”, said the Spurs manager. “He has the flawless profile to be a legend here. I am happy for him”.

He said: “We were fantastic in a week which was less than ideal for us”.

“I just tried to get my shots off, a bit of luck with the third one but if you don’t shoot you don’t score“.