Harry Kane admitted his hat-trick in Tottenham Hotspur’s 3-0 win against Burnley was inspired by his bid to shatter Alan Shearer’s Premier League record for goals in a calendar year.
Kane’s treble at Turf Moor on Saturday took his Premier League goal tally in 2017 to 36.
That equalled the record set by Alan Shearer with Blackburn Rovers in 1995.
England forward Kane will break the record if he scores in Tottenham’s next match against Southampton on Tuesday.
In France, Spain, Italy, Germany and England, only two players have scored more than Kane in 2017 in all competitions.
Kane has 46, but Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani and Barcelona forward Lionel Messi have 50.
“I am aware I’ve equalled Alan Shearer’s record,” Kane said.
“Just going into this game I thought I can get a couple and then there’s Southampton to play. Let’s see what happens on Boxing Day.”
Kane’s first goal came from the penalty spot after a controversial decision to give a foul on Dele Alli when there was only minimal contact.
Insisting Alli hadn’t dived, Kane said: “I thought Dele Alli played great today. The challenge in the first half they both went for it and I thought the penalty was a penalty.”
Tottenham’s win moved them up to fifth as they chase a top-four finish and a place in next season’s Champions League.
“It’s a nice present that’s for sure. Tough game, we knew it’d be tough. It was 3-0 but we could have had more,” Kane added.
“You always want to finish a game off away from home. We didn’t want to give them an incentive.”