Sky Sports pundit Alan Smith pinpointed the “mystery” of how Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane’s game has changed recently, but admits that he will still be the main man for club and country.
The 6″2 [Transfermarkt] mainstay has netted 14 goals in his last 13 games for England, but Smith reckons that there is something different about him so far this season.
He claims that the introduction of the reinvigorated Lucas Moura is the reason for this sudden change in his game – as it means that the attacker now has someone else to think about up front, when he was used to being the sole striker last season.
However, he thinks that it is not just down to Moura coming back into the side, as he believes that it started at this summer’s World Cup.
“There is something different about Harry these days, something different in his movement and overall game. The introduction of Lucas Moura naturally has something to do with it,” he wrote in his column for the Evening Standard.
“Kane now has a strike partner to think about, meaning the Brazilian’s positioning can dictate Kane’s, which was never the case in previous seasons when Tottenham’s No10 led the line on his own.
“I think there’s more to it than that, as shown in Kane’s World Cup displays, when he sank deeper and deeper as the tournament wore on. It was quite a mystery, this change of approach, from a striker normally keen to stay up front and get in the box.”
OPINION
There is no doubting Kane’s ability, but Smith is spot on with this verdict on Harry Kane. He is most definitely a different striker to who we saw last season, but now he has a player who can dictate his play up front. Kane is obviously not used to this, so he has had to adapt to this change in play. Some may argue that he is more prolific when he is left to spearhead the attack on his own, which he proved last season – but he just has to get used to playing alongside Moura more often. Playing alongside someone else may improve his overall game, and it may help him progress into an even more lethal forward. Yes, his game is different to what we saw of him last term, but Spurs’ supporters should be thankful that they still have him to call upon. If Kane is playing by himself up front or if he has Moura as his striking partner, he will still be the same threat that he was last season.