Speaking recently on The Guardian’s Football Weekly podcast, Jonathan Liew issued a damning verdict on the ability of Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane.
Kane, who has scored a remarkable 185 goals and provided 30 assists over his 285 appearances for Spurs, by his own standards, has been having a bit of a quiet season.
The 26-year-old has still bagged 15 goals in the Premier League this term, as well as a further six goals in five appearances in the Champions League, however, the fact remains that unless he manages another two goals over Tottenham’s two remaining Premier League fixtures, this will be the England international’s worst return of league goals since his 2013/14 campaign.
Journalist Liew believes that Kane is no longer the striker he used to be, saying:
“The great thing about Kane was, in his heyday – it’s weird talking about a heyday, but I think it’s accurate – he was two strikers in one. He could drop back to link play, he was great at nudging the ball around the corner or playing a little quick diagonal, releasing [Heung-min] Son, releasing Lucas [Moura], releasing Dele Alli, and then he could bomb into the box. He wasn’t quick, but he was sharp, and he could get in front of his man and score that tap in from six yards, and these days he can’t do both in the same move.
“So, he drops back and he creates – which he’s perfectly good at doing – or he stands up front like a mannequin and the ball bounces off him. He can’t play both of those roles anymore. I don’t know whether it’s the physical demands, I don’t know whether he’s had too many injuries to be able to play those roles, whether he just lacks that sharpness and he needs a whole pre-season.
“But I don’t think he’s as complete a forward as he was when he was really, really good. And I think that’s a big problem. And, I think it lies at the heart of why Tottenham got so bad so quickly, because Kane was the heart of everything they did defensively, as well. He was the guy leading the press, and if you look at him in a big game now, he can’t press anymore. He can’t press like he used to.”
TIF Thoughts…
As such, it would appear that Liew thinks the reason for Kane’s dip in form could be down to the fact that he has not had a full pre-season for a while, which, considering the fact that there will be a short turnaround period over the summer prior to next season’s Premier League kicking off, does not appear to bode well for the 26-year-old.
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