Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino hails Harry Kane as 'one of world's best strikers'

Posted Sunday, November 20, 2016 by Skysports.com

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino hails Harry Kane as 'one of world's best strikers'
Harry Kane netted twice in two minutes to seal the victory for Tottenham

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino hailed Harry Kane as "one of world's best strikers" after his double sealed a dramatic win against West Ham.

England striker Kane, fit again after seven weeks out with ankle ligament damage, struck twice in the final two minutes as Spurs came from behind to stun their London rivals.

The 23-year-old, sent back from England duty last weekend in order to build up his fitness, tucked in an 89th-minute cross from Son Heung-min to equalise.

Then, as the clock moved into stoppage time, Kane coolly tucked away a penalty after Havard Nordtveit fouled Son to secure Tottenham's first win in eight matches.

"He's back!" Pochettino said. "He's one of the best strikers in the world. When you play without your main striker for 10 or 11 games it's tough for any team. He's a player who is very important for us.

"It wasn't ideal to have Harry on the pitch for 96 minutes, that's true, but it's difficult to take him off when you need to win the game. In the end we pushed him but now he's very happy with energy and that can help him recover."

Spurs' unbeaten record was in jeopardy after Michail Antonio headed West Ham into a first-half lead, but equalised through Harry Winks, who lashed in the rebound after Vincent Janssen's shot was blocked for a goal on his full Premier League debut.

But Manuel Lanzini put the Hammers back in front after Winston Reid was brought down in the area by Janssen.

However, Kane's late heroics meant more misery for West Ham, who remain just a point above the relegation zone.

Tottenham now move up to fifth - one points and place behind local rivals Arsenal - which is something that looks very appealing for Pochettino who praised the effort from his side.

"The table looks much better, we are three points off the top and 12 unbeaten from the beginning," he added.

"It was really important to get the three points, it was a very tough game, I'm very pleased with the performance.

"West Ham were very good and we showed big character and personality, the team always try to find the goal and for that I am very pleased. The players fought until the last minute and the reward was unbelievable."