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EPL Table: 2016 Top Scorers, Standings After Post-Week 31 Premier League Scores
March 20, 2016
Harry Kane bagged a brace at home to Bournemouth to open up daylight at the top of the Premier League top scorers standings on Sunday.
The Tottenham Hotspur man scored his 20th and 21st goals of the season as the Lilywhites dispatched the Cherries 3-0, putting him ahead of Leicester City's Jamie Vardy.
Jermain Defoe also added to his tally in the Tyne-Wear derby as Sunderland drew 1-1 with Newcastle United.
Here is a look at how the race for the golden boot is shaping up and the latest standings after Manchester United beat Manchester City 1-0 and Southampton came from behind to beat Liverpool 3-2:
| Premier League Week 31: Sunday's Results | ||
| Tottenham Hotspur | 3-0 | Bournemouth |
| Newcastle United | 1-1 | Sunderland |
| Southampton | 3-2 | Liverpool |
| Manchester City | 0-1 | Manchester United |
| BBC Sport | ||
| EPL Top Goalscorers | |||
| Position | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Harry Kane | Tottenham Hotspur | 21 |
| 2 | Jamie Vardy | Leicester City | 19 |
| 3 | Romelu Lukaku | Everton | 18 |
| 4 | Riyad Mahrez | Leicester City | 16 |
| 5 | Sergio Aguero | Manchester City | 16 |
| 6 | Odion Ighalo | Watford | 14 |
| 7 | Olivier Giroud | Arsenal | 12 |
| 8 | Jermain Defoe | Sunderland | 12 |
| 9 | Diego Costa | Chelsea | 11 |
| 10 | Marko Arnautovic | Stoke City | 10 |
| BBC Sport | |||
| Updated Standings | |||||||||
| POS | CLUB | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS |
| 1 | Leicester City | 31 | 19 | 9 | 3 | 54 | 31 | 23 | 66 |
| 2 | Tottenham Hotspur | 31 | 17 | 10 | 4 | 56 | 24 | 32 | 61 |
| 3 | Arsenal | 30 | 16 | 7 | 7 | 48 | 30 | 18 | 55 |
| 4 | Manchester City | 30 | 15 | 6 | 9 | 52 | 32 | 20 | 51 |
| 5 | West Ham United | 30 | 13 | 11 | 6 | 47 | 35 | 12 | 50 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 30 | 14 | 8 | 8 | 38 | 27 | 11 | 50 |
| 7 | Southampton | 31 | 13 | 8 | 10 | 41 | 32 | 9 | 47 |
| 8 | Stoke City | 31 | 13 | 7 | 11 | 34 | 37 | -3 | 46 |
| 9 | Liverpool | 29 | 12 | 8 | 9 | 45 | 40 | 5 | 44 |
| 10 | Chelsea | 30 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 45 | 41 | 4 | 41 |
| 11 | West Bromwich Albion | 30 | 10 | 9 | 11 | 30 | 37 | -7 | 39 |
| 12 | Everton | 29 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 51 | 41 | 10 | 38 |
| 13 | Bournemouth | 31 | 10 | 8 | 13 | 38 | 50 | -12 | 38 |
| 14 | Watford | 30 | 10 | 7 | 13 | 30 | 32 | -2 | 37 |
| 15 | Swansea City | 31 | 9 | 9 | 13 | 31 | 40 | -9 | 36 |
| 16 | Crystal Palace | 30 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 32 | 40 | -8 | 33 |
| 17 | Norwich City | 31 | 7 | 7 | 17 | 32 | 54 | -22 | 28 |
| 18 | Sunderland | 30 | 6 | 8 | 16 | 36 | 55 | -19 | 26 |
| 19 | Newcastle United | 30 | 6 | 7 | 17 | 29 | 55 | -26 | 25 |
| 20 | Aston Villa | 31 | 3 | 7 | 21 | 22 | 58 | -36 | 16 |
| PremierLeague.com | |||||||||
Harry Kane, 21 Goals
Kane scored twice in his last outing against Aston Villa, and it took him just 44 seconds to find the net against Bournemouth, as he turned home Kyle Walker's low cross from the right at the near post.
Bleacher Report UK summarised the reaction on social media:
Squawka Football hailed his incredible campaign, which comes off the back of an outstanding breakout year:
A quarter of an hour into the game, Kane had his second, this time racing onto Dele Alli's exquisite slide-rule pass before finishing into the bottom corner, per the Premier League:
As Match of the Day host Gary Lineker noted, the brace—which helped Tottenham cut the gap at the top of the league back to five points after Leicester's win on Saturday—signified the title race is shaping up to be a straight fight between Spurs and the Foxes:
Zonal Marking's Michael Cox is impressed with the 22-year-old:
Indeed, as BBC Sport noted, only a few select English strikers have managed to score 20 or more Premier League goals in back-to-back seasons—Andy Cole, Les Ferdinand, Robbie Fowler and Alan Shearer.
Vardy looks likely to also surpass the 20-goal mark but last found the net on Valentine's Day, so unless he can rediscover the goalscoring touch he enjoyed earlier in the season, Kane may well romp home to the golden boot.
The Leicester man is still playing well, though, getting three assists in the five matches since then, so the Premier League title may be a different story.
Jermain Defoe, 12 Goals
After scoring a sensational volley that decided the north east derby at a similar stage of the season last year, Defoe once again led the line for the Black Cats on Sunday as their primary goalscoring threat.
Yet again, he scored. After blasting a wild shot over the bar and hitting the side netting from close range, Defoe found the net when he volleyed in through a crowd of bodies after Chancel Mbemba failed to get any distance on a headed clearance.
Squawka Football hailed his outstanding form since the turn of the year, while WhoScored.com's Ben McAleer noted his contributions often come away from home:
Former Newcastle and Sunderland defender Steven Caldwell believes Defoe deserves a call-up from England manager Roy Hodgson this summer:
Along with Kane, the 33-year-old is one of the most in-form English strikers in the Premier League right now.
While he probably won't become a surprise call-up to the Three Lions squad this summer—his form did not earn him one for the upcoming international break even with Wayne Rooney sidelined—he remains a natural predator in the area and a clinical finisher.
That is something Sunderland's rivals Norwich City and Newcastle United have lacked this season, and while they may have only got a point on Sunday, Defoe's goals could keep the Black Cats up.