Only Alan Shearer now stands in Harry Kane’s way of Premier League history. The Tottenham striker scored his 209th goal in a 1-0 win over Crystal Palace on Saturday to surpass Manchester United and Everton legend Wayne Rooney and become the outright second-highest goalscorer in the competition. Remarkably, he has reached that tally in just 317 appearances – 174 fewer games than it took Rooney to score 208. Shearer’s long-standing record of 260 goals, which has gone untouched since his retirement in 2006, is now in the 29-year-old England captain’s sights.
Indeed, Palace manager Roy Hodgson, Kane’s former England boss, said Shearer needs to be “concerned”. “What he has done for Tottenham has been enormous,” Hodgson said of Kane, following his side’s narrow defeat in north London. “He is still a young man, he still has a lot of football in front of him and I’m pretty certain that Alan [Shearer] needs to be concerned about his goal record because Harry will be breathing down his neck.” Hodgson added: “I think the only thing that could stand between him and the record will be whether he can avoid serious injury. Is he going to be able to get 20, 30 matches a year? Is he going to get help from his team-mates and play in a good team – which is what he has been playing in?” If all those things take place, Hodgson believes Kane will break Shearer’s record.
Former Newcastle United and Blackburn Rovers forward Shearer amassed his leading total over 441 games – a rate of 0.59 goals per match. Kane, having played 124 fewer games, has so far averaged slightly higher at 0.66 goals per game in the Premier League.
“I want to keep scoring goals so to pass someone like Wayne Rooney, one of the best players in this country, is a special feeling,” Kane said. On his player’s achievement, Spurs interim manager Ryan Mason said: “Naturally, we’ll all talk about Harry’s goals and he will continue to score goals. We know that. But also that elite mindset, that example that he sets every day, it’s great to be around. When you have people like that they inspire you to be better. We value him so much at this football club.”
Moving above Rooney was not Kane’s only landmark on Saturday. Playing the ball wide to Pedro Porro before meeting the wing-back’s cross at the far post, he overtook Duncan Ferguson to become the first player to score 10 headed goals in a single Premier League campaign. It was also his 100th home goal in the Premier League – making him just the fourth player to reach that tally for a single club after Rooney (101 for Manchester United), Sergio Aguero (106 for Manchester City) and Thierry Henry (120 for Arsenal).
It also cannot be understated that his 26 goals in 35 league games in 2022-23 – his third-highest tally in a single campaign – has come during a turbulent season for Tottenham, which featured the end of Antonio Conte’s tenure and the later departure of interim boss Cristian Stellini. Just how highly Spurs value their club-record goalscorer is expected to be examined this summer, when Kane will enter the final 12 months of his contract. Amid interest from Manchester City two years ago, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy refused to enter negotiations despite Kane’s belief that he had a gentleman’s agreement to leave. It has been widely reported that Manchester United are one club planning to test Levy’s resolve this time around. But in a crucial period for Tottenham, who must also carefully decide the club’s next permanent manager, Saturday’s win offered the latest reminder of how urgently the club must convince its talisman to stay.
Harry Kane has surpassed Manchester United and Everton legend Wayne Rooney to become the outright second-highest goalscorer in the Premier League with 209 goals in 317 appearances – 174 fewer games than it took Rooney to score 208. His long-standing record of 260 goals by Alan Shearer, which has gone untouched since his retirement in 2006, is now in the 29-year-old England captain’s sights. Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson believes that if Kane can avoid serious injury and continue to play 20-30 matches a year with help from his team-mates, he will break Shearer’s record. On Saturday, Kane also became the first player to score 10 headed goals in a single Premier League campaign and his 100th home goal in the Premier League – making him just the fourth player to reach that tally for a single club after Rooney (101 for Manchester United), Sergio Aguero (106 for Manchester City) and Thierry Henry (120 for Arsenal). His 26 goals in 35 league games this season have come during a turbulent season for Tottenham and Spurs must convince their talisman to stay amid interest from Manchester United this summer as Kane enters the final 12 months of his contract.