Mauricio Pochettino hailed Harry Kane for the two late goals that earned Tottenham Hotspur a 3-2 London derby win at home to West Ham United on Saturday.
Kane struck with a minute to go at White Hart Lane, before converting a penalty 160 seconds later as Spurs maintained their unbeaten start to the English Premier League campaign.
It was also Tottenham’s first win since beating Manchester City on Oct. 2, at a time when England striker Kane was injured.
Photo: Reuters
Kane had also scored on his comeback in the 1-1 draw at Arsenal before the international break and confirmed his status as Tottenham’s main goal supply in the derby.
“He is back,” Tottenham manager Pochettino said of Kane. “For me, he is one of the best strikers in the world. He is a player who is very important for us. It was fantastic to see Harry Kane score again.”
West Ham, who remain a single point and place above the relegation zone, twice took the lead before Kane sunk them and, to make matters worse, defender Winston Reid was sent off in stoppage-time.
Michail Antonio’s header gave the Hammers a halftime lead and, after Harry Winks had marked his first Premier League start with a Tottenham equaliser, Manuel Lanzini’s penalty restored the advantage.
However, Tottenham, who remained fifth, were not to be denied.
“People expect a lot from us, that we will play well, score goals and win the games, but there is no team that can keep to the same level for 10 months,” the Argentine manager said. “Today, we were better, that’s the truth — we were better than West Ham. One team deserved to win the game at the end and that was Tottenham, no doubt, but maybe we can play better.”
“I don’t know if I can say we are happy with the performance, but we showed character today, he said. “Maybe it wasn’t our best game, but sometimes it is difficult [against] an aggressive team with a good plan.”
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and