Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son have forged the best partnership in the Premier League - underlined by their combination play in Tottenham's 2-0 win over Arsenal on Sunday. Here, we examine the stats behind their phenomenal success...
Monday 7 December 2020 09:13, UK
Sergio Aguero and David Silva were a great combination. Tottenham supporters might even begrudgingly acknowledge that Thierry Henry and Robert Pires had their moments for Arsenal. But on derby day it was Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son who combined twice to give Spurs a 2-0 win and move clear of both on the list of Premier League partnerships.
Only Chelsea's Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard have set up more goals for each other in Premier League history now. Their record was 36 goals but with Kane and Son already on 31, there is every chance that this duo will surpass that tally this season. If they do so then it could even be enough to carry Jose Mourinho's side all the way to the title.
Kane was magnanimous about his part in Son's opening goal, a wonderful curled effort that beat Bernd Leno from 20 yards out. "When I am passing it to him and he is cutting inside and whipping it top bins it is an easy game for me," the Spurs striker told Sky Sports.
But that was not the full story.
It was Kane's ability to hold the ball up that facilitated the move, reacting quickest to find space away from Gabriel before evading the attention of Thomas Partey. He then had the presence of mind to find his partner in the left channel. "He has become absolutely amazing at that," Gary Neville told Sky Sports. "That little touch, he shifts it and lays it off to Son."
Remarkably, this was the eighth occasion already this season that Kane has provided the assist for a Son goal. It is not yet a Premier League record. Stan Collymore managed nine for Robbie Fowler and Mike Newell did the same for Alan Shearer. But that was over a full season. There are still 27 games remaining of this one. These are astonishing numbers.
Ten assists is Kane's overall tally for the campaign now, one that is only 11 games old. No player has ever hit double figures for assists quicker, not even Kevin De Bruyne.
What sets Kane apart, of course, is what he did just before the half-time interval. His crashing left-footed shot into the roof of the net curtailed any hope of an Arsenal comeback. It was his eighth Premier League goal of the season. The arch-creator is still a goal machine.
The effectiveness of the partnership is further illustrated by the list of players to have been involved in the most goals this season. Kane is well clear of the rest with 18. But who is the next man on that list? It is Son, the man who unselfishly slipped him in for the second here.
It is five years now since Son made his debut for Tottenham alongside Kane in a 1-0 win away to Sunderland in September 2015. But while both were individual successes, it took some time for this partnership to take shape. They managed just one assist each in that first season together - and neither of those assists were laid on for the other.
The game awareness has developed, the appreciation that lending the ball to a team-mate will reap rewards for team and partnership. "We are at an age now where we are coming into our prime in terms of understanding the game and understanding each other," said Kane.
Asked about his star pairing after the game, it was no surprise that Mourinho chose to accentuate another aspect of their performance in repelling Arsenal on Sunday.
"They are working like animals - with all respect for animals, I love animals, don't get me wrong - working amazingly hard when the team did not have the ball," he told Sky Sports. "Harry Kane clearing balls in his own box, Son in the first 60 minutes as a winger, working a lot with [Hector] Bellerin, and then as a second striker, working a lot with the centre-back.
"This is not just about scoring goals and being world-class players. They are also great guys, great professionals, that give everything for the team."
That is easier to do when the prize is so clear to see. This season might be young but the advent calendars are open and Tottenham are top of the table. Three games against Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal have brought seven points. These players are seeing the results of their hard work and dreaming of where it might take them come the spring.
"They are all buying into this because they are winning," said Neville. "You can see there is a shape and a spirit." Kane himself said much the same. "It is a season where we are all pulling in the same direction," he added. "Everyone on the pitch is prepared to defend, attack, do what it takes to win the game. I am happy to do it. I am happy to win games."
With the Premier League's best forward partnership in this mood, in this system, and playing with this attitude, Tottenham are well placed to win many more of them.
