Fulham 0 Tottenham 3: Kane hat-trick fires Spurs into quarter-finals

An impressive hat-trick from Harry Kane eased Tottenham to a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Fulham in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Sunday.

The visitors came into the game at Craven Cottage off the back of disappointing defeats to Liverpool and Gent, but they made a strong start and deservedly took the lead when Kane converted Christian Eriksen’s low cross in the 16th minute.

The same combination of playmaker and striker successfully unlocked the home defence again early in the second half, Kane applying the neat, close-range finish.

And the third arrived 17 minutes from time, Alli supplying the through-ball and Kane timing his run perfectly before calmly finding the net to take his tally for the season to 19 in all competitions.

HAT-TRICK! 3-0 #COYS pic.twitter.com/RhrOkluE12

— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) February 19, 2017

Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino opted to start with seven members of the side who began the game against Liverpool last weekend and they ultimately proved far too strong for Slavisa Jokanovic’s men, who occupy eighth place in the Championship.

Starved of possession and unable to counter Tottenham’s impressive movement, the hosts rarely looked capable of securing the upset that would have seen them reach the last eight for the first time since 2010.

Instead it was the Premier League side who cruised to what was just their third away win since the end of September, but their fourth in as many visits to Craven Cottage.

Tottenham looked bright and purposeful during the early exchanges, creating two decent chances within the opening five minutes.
 
Alli provided the assist for the first, heading the ball down to Kane, who saw his low shot palmed away by Marcus Bettinelli in the Fulham goal.
 
And the second fell the way of Alli himself, the England midfielder dragging a well-struck shot wide from just inside the box.
 
The visitors were not to be denied for long, however, as Kane duly broke the deadlock.
 
Fulham were guilty of switching off when Kieran Trippier took a quick throw, allowing Eriksen to make ground down the right and deliver a fine cross which Kane slid home at full-stretch.
 
A poor clearance from Michel Vorm almost gifted the home side an immediate equaliser, but the Dutch goalkeeper’s blushes were spared as Tom Cairney failed to find the target from 25 yards out.
 
The Fulham skipper then almost gifted Spurs a second goal, surrendering the ball cheaply to Kane, who subsequently played Eriksen in, only for the Dane to blaze wildly and wastefully over from a narrow angle.

That second goal did arrive six minutes into the second half, however, with Eriksen and Kane again combining to great effect.

The England striker ghosted away from his marker to reach a fine cross from the former Ajax man and neatly clip the ball past Bettinelli.

A delightful second for @HKane and plenty of praise for @HarryWinks ‘ pass that got the move started. #COYS pic.twitter.com/znJLLyeoiZ

— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) February 19, 2017

Alli almost made it 3-0 moments later, firing over after yet more neat approach work from the effervescent Eriksen, but the reprieve proved to be a temporary one for Fulham as Kane raced clear to clinch his hat-trick and add some extra gloss to a very satisfying afternoon for the North London side.

Key Opta stats:

– Kane has scored nine times in nine games in 2017 for Spurs (all comps).
– Kane has netted 20 goals in his last 22 London derbies in all competitions for Tottenham Hotspur. This was his first hat-trick in a London derby however.
– Christian Eriksen registered his 10th and 11th assist of the campaign for Tottenham (all comps), five more than any other player has for the club this season.
– Four of Eriksen’s last six assists for Spurs have been for Harry Kane goals.
– Since beating Spurs 4-0 in the FA Cup in 2011, Fulham have scored just four times in seven games against them.
– Spurs have progressed from 13 of their last 14 FA Cup ties against teams from lower down the pyramid.