Homegrown hero Harry Kane scored Tottenham Hotspur’s last goal at White Hart Lane as they bade farewell to their home with a 2-1 victory over Manchester United on Sunday.
Kane, born up the road in Chingford, added to Victor Wanyama’s early header to secure a victory that confirmed Spurs will finish in second place in the Premier League and ended United’s hopes of a top-four finish.
Demolition work at the Lane, Spurs’ home since 1899, will start on Monday, with Mauricio Pochettino’s side playing at Wembley next season before moving into their new ground, which is being built on the same site, in 2018.
“What a way to finish,” said Kane, who was mobbed as hundreds of fans poured onto the pitch at the final whistle.
“We wanted a win so badly in our last game here. I said before I’d love to score the winning goal and for it to happen is brilliant. To see it go in was special.”
The Lane has been graced by such Spurs greats as Jimmy Greaves, Steve Perryman and Glenn Hoddle and it was fitting that Kane, emblem of their exciting current side, should be their final goal-scorer there.
It was Spurs’ 14th successive home league win — equalling the club record, set over two seasons in 1987 — and meant they finished a league campaign unbeaten at home for the first time since 1964-65.
Supporters flooded onto the pitch at the end of the game before eventually being persuaded to return to their seats for a ceremony featuring famous figures from the club’s past.
Sixth-place United, who replied through Wayne Rooney, fell to a second successive league defeat, having seen a 25-game unbeaten run ended by a 2-0 loss down the road at Arsenal last weekend.
Guaranteed to finish outside the top four for the third time in four seasons, Jose Mourinho’s team must now beat Ajax in the Europa League final to procure a place in the Champions League.
“You can’t play two big competitions with 15 players,” said Mourinho, who made eight changes to the team that had edged Celta Vigo in the Europa League semifinals on Thursday.
“At the moment, the Premier League matches are the ones we don’t want to play.”
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