3-1 v Fulham FC - 18 August 2018 - Home

Tottenham Hotspur Badge

Spurs 3

Fulham FC

Fulham FC

1

  • Mitrović
    52'
Details
Match Number

7307

Opposition
Fulham

Fulham FC

Competition
Premier League

Premier League

Season

2018/19

Date

18th August 2018

Kick Off

15:00

Venue

Wembley

Attendance

58,297

Referee

Anthony Taylor

League Position

4th

Opposition League Position

18th

Opposition Form

L

Weather at Kick Off

20.8° - Overcast

Facts & Milestones
  • 7271st overall match (3476 wins, 1600 draws, 2182 losses)

  • 5679th competitive match (2564 wins, 1332 draws, 1783 losses)

  • team

    141st match vs Fulham FC (74 wins, 36 draws, 31 losses)

  • competition

    1002nd Premier League match (425 wins, 255 draws, 322 losses)

  • 6640th match in England (3129 wins, 1491 draws, 2007 losses)

  • 63rd match at Wembley (34 wins, 10 draws, 19 losses)

  • There were 2 changes to the starting lineup from the last match.

For STATS Against
25 Attempts 10
11 Attempts on Target 3
2.9 xG 1.6
60% Possession 40%
780 Touches 578
592 Passes Completed 374
686 Passes Attempted 462
86.3% Pass Completion 81.0%
27 Crosses 7
25 Throw-ins 12
5 Corners 2
8 Tackles 8
4 Blocks 10
12 Interceptions 10
9 Fouls 5
1 Offsides 3
Report

Harry Kane finally scored his first Premier League goal in August as Tottenham maintained their 100% start to the season with victory over newly promoted Fulham.

England striker Kane had failed to find the net in 14 previous games in the first month of the season and it looked like his barren run was going to continue as he had a goal ruled out and hit the crossbar at Wembley.

But his luck turned with 13 minutes remaining as he cleverly turned his marker inside the area before tucking the ball into the far corner for his side's third.

Lucas Moura had opened the scoring in the first half with his first Premier League goal, curling a clinical strike beyond Fabri's dive.

However, Fulham - who lost to Crystal Palace last weekend in their first game back in the top flight following promotion - levelled just after the break when Aleksandar Mitrovic nodded in from close range.

Kieran Trippier restored Tottenham's lead with a stunning free-kick that stirred memories of his strike for England against Croatia at this summer's World Cup, before Kane's strike secured the points that moved the hosts top of the Premier League with two wins from their opening two games.

Kane scored 52 goals in 59 games last season - an incredible figure considering he failed to get off the mark in the Premier League until September.

The striker has been a notoriously slow starter to a new campaign and he once again failed to score in Tottenham's opening win against Newcastle last weekend.

Kane looked short of match fitness in that game - not surprising considering he only returned to training five days prior to the start of the season following the World Cup - and for large spells he struggled to make an impression against Fulham on Saturday.

But even when he did have the chance to make his mark it looked like his August struggles would continue.

He first had the ball in the net midway through the first half, picking up a loose ball before clipping it into the net after Moura had charged through on goal - but that was ruled out after referee Anthony Taylor deemed the Brazilian had fouled Fulham keeper Fabri as they challenged for the ball.

There was more frustration in the second half when Kane timed a run perfectly to meet Trippier's cross, but this time his volley cannoned back off the bar.

But if Kane was starting to become frustrated by his early-season struggles in front of goal he did not show it, finally breaking his August duck with a composed and clinical finish.

The goal ended a barren run in the first month of a Premier League campaign that had lasted for 1,065 minutes over five seasons.

Kane's finish also came with his 49th attempt on goal during his run and the 25-year-old told BBC Radio 5 live: "There has been a lot of talk about it every year and thankfully I got on the scoresheet and we got the win - and that is most important.

"It is one of those things that you can't explain. I had chances today and everyone must be thinking it must be another one of those.

"I am not silly and I know people talk about it, but it is nice to put it to bed."

This London derby brought together two sides who had employed very different approaches to the summer transfer window.

Fulham spent a reported £100m as they brought in 12 players in an effort to give themselves the strongest chance possible of survival on their Premier League return. Tottenham did not make a single signing.

It was that familiarity the Spurs players had with each other that ultimately came out on top, but there were promising signs for the Cottagers.

After looking like a collection of individuals for the first 20 minutes - struggling to put together a coherent spell of possession - they improved significantly as the game wore on.

Jean Michael Seri displayed excellent passing ability, most notably putting Ryan Sessegnon through with a wonderful ball over the defence, while Sessegnon himself highlighted why he is one of the most promising youngsters in England by getting in behind the Tottenham defence on a couple of occasions.

Given a bit more time together, Fulham fans can feel confident their team should soon start to justify the money spent to assemble it.

Location
League Table
# Team PL W D L GF GA GD PTS
1
Liverpool
1 1 0 0 4 0 4 3
2
Chelsea
1 1 0 0 3 0 3 3
3
Afc bournemouth
1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
4
Crystal palace
1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
5
Manchester city
1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
6
Watford
1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
7
Manchester united
1 1 0 0 2 1 1 3
8
Tottenham Hotspur Badge Tottenham Hotspur
1 1 0 0 2 1 1 3
9
Wolverhampton wanderers
1 0 1 0 2 2 0 1
10
Everton
1 0 1 0 2 2 0 1
11
Burnley
1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1
12
Southampton
1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1
13
Leicester city
1 0 0 1 1 2 -1 0
14
Newcastle united
1 0 0 1 1 2 -1 0
15
Arsenal
1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0
16
Brighton hove albion
1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0
17
Cardiff city
1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0
18
Fulham
1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0
19
Huddersfield town
1 0 0 1 0 3 -3 0
20
West ham united
1 0 0 1 0 4 -4 0
# Team PL W D L GF GA GD PTS
1
Manchester city
2 2 0 0 8 1 7 6
2
Chelsea
2 2 0 0 6 2 4 6
3
Watford
2 2 0 0 5 1 4 6
4
Tottenham Hotspur Badge Tottenham Hotspur
2 2 0 0 5 2 3 6
5
Afc bournemouth
2 2 0 0 4 1 3 6
6
Everton
2 1 1 0 4 3 1 4
7
Liverpool
1 1 0 0 4 0 4 3
8
Crystal palace
1 1 0 0 2 0 2 3
9
Leicester city
2 1 0 1 3 2 1 3
10
Manchester united
2 1 0 1 4 4 0 3
11
Brighton hove albion
2 1 0 1 3 4 -1 3
12
Newcastle united
2 0 1 1 1 2 -1 1
13
Southampton
2 0 1 1 1 2 -1 1
14
Wolverhampton wanderers
2 0 1 1 2 4 -2 1
15
Burnley
2 0 1 1 1 3 -2 1
16
Cardiff city
2 0 1 1 0 2 -2 1
17
Arsenal
2 0 0 2 2 5 -3 0
18
Fulham
2 0 0 2 1 5 -4 0
19
West ham united
2 0 0 2 1 6 -5 0
20
Huddersfield town
2 0 0 2 1 9 -8 0
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