'Great feeling' to beat Alan Shearer's record, says Harry Kane

Courtesy: Twitter (@mousadembele)

Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane said beating Alan Shearer`s Premier League record for goals in a calendar year was a "great feeling" after he netted a hat-trick on Tuesday.

Kane`s three goals in a 5-2 rout of Southampton also guaranteed he would finish as Europe`s leading scorer for 2017.

"It was hard not to think about it, being level going into the game," said Kane. "I wanted to win the game but of course I wanted to score as a striker. Getting that record was a great feeling."

(Also see: WATCH – Tottenham Hotspur and England forward Harry Kane breaks Alan Shearer's 22-year-old record and overtakes Lionel Messi)

Kane has 39 Premier League goals in 2017, three more than Shearer`s previous Premier League record of 36, set in 1995.

"I`ve improved physically – recovery for games, getting ready for each game, eating right and ice baths," added Kane.

"I feel good and sharp and at my best at this busy period."

"They are fantastic players here. It`s fantastic to play with them. We`re a hard team to stop and I said to them before the game to try and set me up and they did that, so I`ll have to take them out for dinner."

Kane`s third goal took him to 56 for club and country in 2017 – lifting him above Barcelona`s Lionel Messi to become Europe`s top-scorer over the last 12 months in the five major countries (England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France).

Kane said it had been a "fantastic" year.

"To get compared to those players – the Messis and Shearers – is what it is all about," he said. "To get another hat-trick is a great way to end the year.

"It is always about improving every year. That`s what I always have done throughout my career and it is what I will continue to do."