Kane scores hat-trick, Tottenham wins big in the last match of 2017

Harry Kane and his two partners Dele Alli and Son Heung-min had a brilliant evening, helping their team defeat Southampton 5-2 in round 20 of the Premier League.

Scorers: Harry Kane 22, 39 & 67, Alli 49, Son 51 - Boufal 64, Tadic 82.

The 55,000-plus spectators at Wembley Stadium experienced a memorable Boxing Day, as Tottenham players gave them the perfect gift - three points, a feast of football with a rain of goals against Southampton.

After a good first half, Tottenham started to open the game for their home fans with Harry Kane heading the ball past goalkeeper Forster in the 22nd minute. This opening goal helped the home players play with excitement, especially in attack, where the trio of Alli, Kane, and Son played very well together. And the fact that Southampton's net continued to shake came as an inevitable consequence.

Kane gave Southampton's defense a Boxing Day nightmare. Photo: SM.

Kane added two more goals to complete his hat-trick, a close-range strike from Son's pass in the 39th minute and an easy finish from the centre of the box after receiving the ball from Alli in the 67th.

Not as brilliant as Kane, but Alli and Son also made their mark on the scoreboard. Alli himself made it 3-0 in the 59th minute with a decisive shot from outside the box after Son's pass. And in return, the English star, in a quick counter-attack just two minutes later, set up his Korean teammate to make it 4-0.

Southampton go into the Wembley clash in a bad mood, having drawn three and lost three of their previous six games. They are also without key striker Charle Austin through suspension, and first-choice centre-back Virgil van Dijk, who has been left out of the squad as he looks to leave in January.

That mentality made Southampton enter the match with their legs like they were wearing stones, and soon conceded four goals after only 51 minutes of play. Their efforts after that only helped them salvage some honor, comforting the small group of home fans who had come to London to cheer, with Sofiane Boufal's goal reducing the score to 1-4 in the 64th minute.

Southampton are drifting towards the bottom of the Premier League with their fourth defeat in a run of seven games without a win. Photo: Reuters.

But Kane's goal three minutes later made it 5-1 and Southampton's hopes were dashed. Playing in a resigned mood, the visitors could only pull one back late on through Dusan Tadic, as Tottenham began to lose focus.

With three points from this match, Tottenham have leapfrogged Liverpool into the top four and will stay there at least until the Merseysiders finish their late game of the day - against Swansea.

According to VNE