Dele Alli, Kane Shoot Spurs into Top Four
Harry Kane and Dele Alli scored two goals apiece as Tottenham thrashed lacklustre Watford to move into the Premier League’s top four for the first time since October.
Spurs dominated from the off at Vicarage Road – having 13 shots in the first half alone – and seconds after Alli struck the bar, Kane coolly finished a well-weighted Kieran Trippier pass.
The same duo combined for the second, Kane stealing between two static defenders to prod home Trippier’s fine cross from six yards.
It was the England striker’s 59th goal in his first 100 Premier League appearances, matching Arsenal legend Thierry Henry.
Alli made it 3-0 by passing low into the net after Younes Kaboul skewed the ball into his path, then arrived unmarked to finish Kane’s cross for his fifth goal in three matches.
Watford, who did not have a shot on target until Kaboul bundled home a late consolation, drop to 13th having won just once in seven matches.
Spurs’ fourth successive win briefly took them third, before Arsenal moved back ahead of them with victory over Crystal Palace.
Having won at Southampton by the same scoreline on Wednesday, Tottenham have scored four goals in consecutive away games for the first time since October 1960 – the season they did the Double.
Their 10-point deficit on leaders Chelsea, whom they host on Wednesday, will temper any title talk, but there can be no doubt Spurs are in menacing mood.
Trippier, in for the suspended Kyle Walker, impressed on just his third league appearance of the season and underlined the strength in depth at White Hart Lane.
It is easy to praise Tottenham, but Watford’s early defensive offering was non-existent.
Manager Walter Mazzarri has stressed he will use the transfer window to find cover for as many as eight first-teamers out injured.
But his side can have no excuse for their dire defensive work against Spurs – the third time this season they have been three goals down at half-time.
With 34 goals conceded, 14 more than at this stage last season, holes at the back need plugging urgently, but there are also problems at the other end of the pitch.
Odion Ighalo, drafted in after Camilo Zuniga limped out of the warm-up, was peripheral, with just 23 touches, only two more than 68th-minute Spurs substitute Ben Davies. He and Troy Deeney have contributed 10 goals between them this season, 14 fewer than at the same stage in 2015-16.
The Hornets next face Stoke and Middlesbrough. Their fans could be looking over their shoulders at the bottom three by mid-January, unless they can find some form.
