Ryan Mason revealed that he was impressed by Tottenham’s Harry Kane the first time he saw him play despite thinking the forward was overweight.
The former Spurs midfielder, who recently retired from football, shared that the first time he saw Kane he was taken aback by how technically good he was.
“I had the weekend off, can’t remember why, but I remember going over there on a Sunday just to watch the younger Spurs lads,” said Mason on Andy Goldstein’s Final Word, as quoted by talkSPORT’s website.
“And I remember seeing Harry score a hat-trick in about 15 minutes and he was so chubby, so overweight but I looked at him and I thought, wow.
“Technically, he is unbelievable and I think now people don’t appreciate how technically good he is.
“Harry could play centre-mid, he could play centre-half, he could play right-back – he could play any position on the pitch because he’s a footballer.
“I think the only doubt with Harry was his speed, his weight.”
Kane is now an important player for Spurs first-team, but appeared to injure his ankle in their 4-1 victory over Bournemouth on Sunday and could be set to spend time on the sidelines.
OPINION
This isn’t the first time that someone has recalled thinking that Kane was overweight when he was younger, but look at him now. The Spurs forward has gone on to be an important player for his club and country, and has very few people doubting his ability. Kane has scored 35 goals in 38 appearances this season and any team would be lucky to have him. It’s funny to hear that Mason doubted the forward’s speed due to his weight as the forward still isn’t exactly pacey, but he has shown that a lack of speed can be overcme with pure ability. The England international will no doubt laugh about Mason’s comments when he hears them and be flattered that he was able to make such a memorable impression when he was younger.