After a lacklustre campaign in 2019/20 where Tottenham missed out on Champions League football, Spurs have come back with a vengeance early on this term. Jose Mourinho’s side is currently top of the Premier League table ahead current title-holders Liverpool (separated by goal difference). They put forward a classy performance last weekend against Manchester City, downing the former champions 2-0.
As a whole, it’s been a fantastic start to the Premier League season for the Lilywhites, bagging an impressive 21 goals in just nine domestic fixtures, while conceding just nine, a league-best. Their backline has been solid as can be, with summer signing Sergio Reguilon shining at left-back in both ends, while Eric Dier and Toby Alderweireld have held it down in front of keeper Hugo Lloris.
But one of the main reasons that Tottenham currently sit in such a prime position is because of their clinical attacking duo of Harry Kane and Heung-min Son. The South Korean has already netted nine times this season, including a four-goal display in just his second appearance of the season back in late September.
Then there’s Kane, who has really proven to be much more than just a prototypical striker who only has an eye for goal. The England international has shown world-class playmaking abilities and vision, providing numerous beautiful passes. He’s already tallied nine assists, while also bagging seven goals of his own.
Between the two, they’ve directly been involved in 18 of Spurs’ 21 domestic goals. Talk about dominant.
Leading the way for Spurs
After losing their season opener to Everton, Tottenham responded in fine fashion on Matchday two, burying Southampton 5-2. Yes, it was a top-notch display, but it was quite literally the Kane and Son show. After conceding the first goal to Saints striker Danny Ings, Mourinho’s squad ran riot on their opponents from that point on.
😍 THIS TEAM 😍#THFC ⚪️ #COYS pic.twitter.com/B7EKjaYLSR
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) November 21, 2020
They proceeded to score five goals from the 45th minute on, with Son netting four, while Kane bagged the last. But it’s important to note that the Englishmen assisted every single one of the Korean’s goals. They weren’t just simple through balls either. They all required precision, especially the first and last, where Kane picked out Son through the smallest pockets of space. It was truly a masterpiece to watch.
Mourinho Enhancing Their Abilities
Playing under Mourinho has also benefited both of these players. For Kane, he’s always possessed the ability to provide for his teammates. But due to his new manager’s counter-attacking style of play where he’s able to let Son use his pace, it permits Kane to move into wider areas, where he can set free his strike partner by knocking longer through balls either over defenders or in behind, whether it’s diagonally or straight through. With many clubs across Europe choosing to press their backlines higher, it’s actually helped Spurs expose their opponents while allowing Son to use his legs to beat defenders who get caught too high up the pitch.
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Kane has frankly never registered this many assists though, especially this early in a season. He’s directly had a hand also in almost every single one of his strike partner’s goals, which is impressive in itself. A lot of strikers are hell-bent on scoring goals only, but Kane is very content with setting them up as well. Before this season, the most assists Kane has collected in a season was seven. The 27-year old has already shattered that previous total and at this rate, is well on his way to much more.
For Son, his most prolific season came in 2016/17, where the speedy attacker bagged 14 goals. Already on nine for the year, it would be no surprise to see him exceed that previous best. Last term, Son also had ten assists, while Kane was the one who typically had more goals. Again, this comes back to Mourinho’s tactics where he allows both of these players to roam free up top and play off each other. This season, they’re both doing it all on the attack.
It’s complete unselfishness that has propelled these two to such a prolific start. They constantly swap positions on the frontline and always have their eyes on each other for possible link-up play.
Proving To Be One Of The Top Duos In Europe
These two clearly have a very good understanding of each other. Whether Kane is threading a pass through to Son in the final third or vice versa, their clinical abilities are leading Tottenham to a dream start.
This side is making it very clear they’re completely invested in competing for a title this year in England’s top flight with a tremendous attack at the forefront.
