Well, Harry Kane may not have made himself flavour of the month at Liverpool yesterday, but his relationship with Tottenham Hotspur fans may just have improved again.
Increasing popularity
Kane’s reputation at Tottenham has taken a battering since the summer, when he appeared to want to move on.
The England captain has been accused of not showing enough passion by Spurs supporters since he returned to play for them.
Before yesterday Kane had just one Premier League goal to his name, and his performances in a Tottenham shirt certainly weren’t of the standards that supporters have grown to expect over the years.
Yet there was something different about Kane’s demeanour during Sunday’s game.
He got on the scoresheet, but his work-rate was improved and there was a fighting spirit which hasn’t always been evident in his game this season.
That being said, Kane was rather fortunate to stay on the pitch.
The Tottenham goalscorer lunged into a tackle with Andy Robertson, and he was surely fortunate to get away without VAR sending him from the field.
After the game Kane spoke about the challenge and how he felt he got the ball.
Indeed, he actually said he was surprised to even get a yellow for the challenge – which only served to wind up an angry Liverpool fan-base even more.
“I was quite surprised [to be booked] to be honest,” he told Sky Sports.
And Tottenham fans were delighted to see a side to Kane that hadn’t shown for some time in their colours.
Back to his best?
If Antonio Conte can get Kane back to his best then things will start to look very promising for Spurs.
Kane actually wasn’t at his most ruthless on Sunday, and was guilty of missing at least two very presentable opportunities.
But if he continues to play with such passion and desire then Tottenham fans are likely to find it far easier to forgive his actions over the summer.
The goal Kane did score against Liverpool was expertly taken, as he finished low into the bottom corner to put his side in front.
And the performance Tottenham put in only serves as encouragement that they could make a push for a top four spot this term.
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