20 minutes into Tottenham's first Premier League game of 2023 and there was one horrifying statistic that showed just how bad things are at times under Antonio Conte.
Harry Kane, second-highest all-time top goalscorer in Spurs history, third highest goalscorer in Premier League history and England's joint highest all-time goalscorer, hadn't touched the ball,
Not once, not twice, not thrice, not at all.
Instead, Kane was just a spectator roaming around the pitch as a laboured, lethargic Tottenham reminded their supporters of how up and down supporting a football club can be.
In the 2022 calendar year, Spurs scored 80 times under Antonio Conte, second only to champions Manchester City. But of late, they have looked devoid of ideas when Dejan Kulusevski is not in the team, and that apparent lack of ideas again came to the fore against Unai Emery's Villa.
Kane would eventually get into the game, and was unlucky to see an effort cleared off the line by Ashley Young just before the interval.
But that's as good as it got for the England captain, who alongside long-time running buddy Son Heung-min could only muster a 2/10 rating as Villa struck twice in the second half to earn a deserved 2-0 win in north London.
It was a desperately disappointing outing for Kane and one that is bound to raise concerns among the club's supporters - should they be looking beyond Conte as head coach rather than the other way around? That is just one of the questions bound to be asked as supporters stare blankly at the bottom of their empty pint glasses.
What Kane mustn't forget is his impressive Premier League record during 2022/23 - he's kept things ticking over all season long with 13 goals in just 17 games, with only Erling Haaland, who is conceivably half man half machine, scoring more.
Source : 90min