Antonio Conte backs Harry Kane amid harsh Brentford chants and World Cup heartache

Tottenham boss Antonio Conte believes Harry Kane has already put his World Cup heartache aside despite harsh chants from Brentord fans on Boxing Day.

Spurs endured a difficult return to Premier League action on Monday, taking a point back to north London following an entertaining away draw with Brentford. It was a game Tottenham were expecting to win, but Brentford have proven a tough nut to crack for a number of top sides already this season, and they were no different on Boxing Day.

Vitali Janett and Ivan Toney were on target to put the Bees two goals to the good by the 54th minute, and Tottenham had to come from behind, with Kane and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg on target. Kane sparked the comeback with a superb header across goal, and it will have been a much-needed goal given the difficult end to the World Cup he suffered.

The striker scored and missed a penalty against France as England bowed out with a 2-1 defeat in the quarter-finals. The penalty Kane missed would have put the Three Lions level, but the Spurs frontman put it over the bar. Kane got a harsh welcome back to Premier League football as a result, with some Brentford fans singing ‘you let your country down’.

The chant was surely in jest, given how important Kane has been for England in recent years, but it will have been a tough one to stomach nonetheless, and Kane certainly silenced the supporters by sparking the comeback.

Speaking after the game, Tottenham boss Conte spoke of Kane’s resiliance, saying: “I have zero doubt about his quality, his mentality and the way he approaches every game. He is facing a strange situation.

“Football is like this, you can have positive or negative moments, but if you are stong mentally, a top player, and if you are player of a top level, there is a moment where you have to put to one side a negative stuation and you have to move on. I think Harry did this. We are talking about a really good player and a good person.”