Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino has praised Harry Kane for breaking the Premier League calendar year goalscoring record, insisting that the striker "deserved it".
The 24-year-old headed home his 37th league goal of 2017 in the Boxing Day 5-2 win over Southampton to surpass Alan Shearer's landmark, set while at Blackburn Rovers in 1995.
Kane then added two more either side of half time to bring his total for the year - for both club and country - to 56, two more than Barcelona and Argentina striker Lionel Messi.
"So happy for him," Pochettino told BBC Sport. "He deserved it. He is not only a talented player but also a great professional.
"It is a great characteristic of him that he is a team player. We need to keep how he is professionally going. He is a massive example for everyone.
"We have seen him grow at the club after three and a half years. Massive, massive, massive improvement. That makes us very proud and I am very happy with all he has achieved."
Kane has now scored 96 Premier League goals for Spurs, one off Teddy Sheringham's record.
Giuseppe Labellarte
