The list of names is long. Candidates to finish 2017 as the top scorer in Europe’s top five leagues were guys like Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Suarez, Sergio Aguero, Edinson Cavani, Robert Lewandowski, Neymar and more. And it was none of them. Tottenham star Harry Kane completed his record-shattering 2017 on Tuesday, getting a hat trick on Boxing Day as Spurs beat Southampton 5-2 to finish the year with 56 goals, one more than Messi and two more than Ronaldo.
But that wasn’t it. Here’s what else he did:
39 Premier League goals
That’s a record for a calendar year.
Incredible @HKane
A new #PL record for a calendar year pic.twitter.com/thtHJeJH5I
— Premier League (@premierleague) December 26, 2017
First PL player to score six hat tricks in a calendar year
6 – Harry Kane is the first player to score six Premier League hat-tricks in a calendar year. Lethal. pic.twitter.com/cMvj7qNHiu
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 26, 2017
Nobody comes close
In the league in 2017, there have been 12 hat tricks. Kane has six of them, and nobody else has more than one.
.@premierleague hat-tricks in 2017:
6 – @HKane
1 – @aguerosergiokun
1 – Josh King
1 – @RomeluLukaku9
1 – @AlvaroMorata
1 – @WayneRooney
1 – @CallumWilson pic.twitter.com/PRktjFO8Dx— Sky Sports Statto (@SkySportsStatto) December 26, 2017
Just as we all expected, right? But in all honesty, Kane has become one of the world’s very best strikers and this comes just in time for England entering a World Cup year. At the age of 24, he’s averaged 30 goals a season over the last three, and he already has 24 this season, including a Premier League-leading 18.
It won’t be long until some serious bids come from some bigger clubs, both in England and across Europe. After his 31-goal season in 2014-15, many thought it was just a fluke. Kane’s shown it is anything but.