How many goals will Tottenham striker Harry Kane end up with this season?
- Cameron Loftus
- 13 March 2022
Out of form for almost half the season, can the England captain take advantage of his current scoring form and hit 20 goals for a sixth season in the Premier League?
His double against Everton in their 5-0 win made it five goals in four league appearances and he continued his scoring form by converting a penalty against Manchester United in their 3-2 defeat on the weekend.
Below, Planet Sport takes a look at Kane's stats to see if his improved form can see him continue his climb up the Premier League scoring charts.
No joy under Nuno
It wasn't just Kane who struggled under Nuno Espirito Santo in the first 10 league games of the season, it was the whole team. The attacking stats made for grim reading, with England's chief striker only mustering one league goal before the Portuguese manager was shown the door.
No team was averaging less shots per game than Spurs, with just 10.3 and only struggling Norwich (6.7) were averaging less goalscoring chances per game (7.1).
Rediscovering his old form
Since being appointed Santo's successor, Conte has overseen 17 Premier League games, winning nine and losing five. The attacking verve is back, with Conte using his favoured three-at-the-back formation.
Spurs have scored 42 times in 27 Premier League games, with Kane contributing 11 goals and three assists. He has appeared in every match Conte has taken charge of.
Back enjoying life under the Italian, Kane has been gushing in his praise of Conte: "He's been brilliant. I can't speak highly enough of him. As a coach, as a person, he's really changed the mindset of a lot of players in the team."
Has Kane been poor this season?
Kane's 11 league goals sit below his expected goals tally of 13.05. He is currently the fifth highest scorer in the Premier League this season and nine off Mo Salah who is currently top with 20.
Only Liverpool's Mohamed Salah (54) has had more shots on target than Kane (31). But whereas Salah has converted 23% of those efforts, the Spurs attacker comes in at 17%.
His 85 shots put him third, with only Salah (112) and Cristiano Ronaldo (87) having pulled the trigger more. He has had 18 more shots than any other Spurs player, with Heung-min Son the next best.
The 28-year-old has contributed three assists, with the expected figure standing at 5.72 and he is some way down on his 2020/21 numbers which saw him notch 14 assists and 7.40 expected assists.
Who does Kane enjoy playing against?
Kane is into double figures for goals against Leicester (16), West Ham and Arsenal (both 11), with Spurs still having to play all three.
How many goals will Harry Kane end the season with?
With 12 games remaining, Kane looks on course to record his lowest top-flight figure since breaking into the Tottenham first team in 2013/14.
However, given a relatively injury-free run to the end of the season, Kane recorded 11 goals in his final 17 games last season. He scored 12 in Spurs' last 17 games of 2017/18 and an even more impressive 14 in 2015/16. He tends to finish the season strong, as was underlined in 2017 when he scored eight in Tottenham's last three, including four against Leicester.
Spurs fans will be hoping for more of the same as this season reaches the business end, with a Champions League spot just about still up for grabs.
And given his previous goalscoring bursts, it is not unrealistic to expect Kane to reach 20 goals or more for a sixth season.
