Nottingham - Harry Kane missed a penalty, but scored twice to surpass 200 league goals in his career and give Tottenham Hotspur a 2-0 victory at Nottingham Forest that kept up their strong start to the Premier League season.
Forest, who have signed 17 players for about £150million since promotion, made the early running before Spurs' prolific striker silenced the crowd with a low fifth-minute strike from inside the penalty area.
His scuffed goal, after a superb run and pass by Dejan Kulusevski, was Kane's 200th league goal.
But it was to get better in the second half when Kane scored a close-range header from a sumptuous outside-of-the-boot cross by Richarlison in the 81st minute. That was his 187th Premier League goal, adding to nine in the Championship and five in League One.
In between, Kane uncharacteristically missed a penalty following a handball on the line by Forest's Steve Cook. Kane's shot was brilliantly saved by Dean Henderson at full-stretch, making up for his failure to stop the first-half goal.
Spurs' third victory in four games, plus one draw, left them third in the league on 10 points - two behind north London rivals Arsenal who have had a flawless start.
Kane acknowledged the pressure Forest put them under for long periods and said Spurs had plenty of room for improvement.
"We’ve had a great pre-season, we’re feeling fit but we’re not quite showing it yet. We are still winning games and becoming stronger as the game goes on," he said.
"It's a long season left, we're still grinding out wins when we're not playing our best ... We've got a fantastic manager, we've got a really strong squad. We're in a good place."
Forest, roared on at the City Ground which waited 23 years for top-flight football to return this year, will take heart from having plenty of possession and chances. Lewis O'Brien forced a smart save while Morgan Gibbs-White shot just over.
But Spurs are the counter-attack masters, and both Kane and strike partner Son Heung-min could have struck more.
Spurs manager Antonio Conte screamed constantly at his charges throughout the game, but could have few complaints at how they stood up to Forest's passion in a raucous atmosphere on a sunny summer afternoon beside the River Trent.
As well as the headline-stealing Kane, Conte will be delighted with the contribution of midfielder Kulusevski who has provided 10 assists since his debut in February, the highest of anyone in the league during that time.
"It was really intense. There was a lot of noise around the pitch," Conte said. "For sure, I understand for the players, the opposition, to play here is not easy, with the crowd against you. We suffered in the right way. In the end we did well."
The result left Forest 13th on four points.
Reuters