Is Tottenham Striker Harry Kane World Class?
As I’ve said many times in the past, people in football love a good debate.
This week many have stated on social media that Harry Kane is a world class striker, while others don’t believe he’s hit that level yet.
β JT (@JamesTaylorAG) September 26, 2017
Can’t lie, I thought Harry Kane was a one/two season wonder but that thought is over. The man is just under world class.
β – (@AnfieldRd96) September 23, 2017
Obviously I don’t want Kane to leave Spurs but the argument that he might have to move to become world class isn’t as daft as it sounds.
β George Ogier (@george_ogier) September 26, 2017
Even the pundits have had their say on the issue.
Thierry Henry, who was clearly a world class striker in his time, believes Tottenham’s Kane isn’t world class yet:
“For Kane, unfortunately for him, it was a short Champions League campaign with Spurs and a short Europa League. The Euros were short also for him.”
While his Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino clearly believes that his hitman is indeed world class:
βHe was fantastic. To score goals in the Champions League means he will get the credit he deserves. He is one of the best strikers in the world.”
Now the real problem is that the whole debate is purely subjective and down to individual opinion. There’s no definitive stat or attribute that makes a player world class.
Of course we know the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Cristiano Ronaldo are all world class but after that people will argue who deserves to be classed above the rest.
For example the amount you score doesn’t necessarily mean you are of the highest quality. No one would have called Kris Boyd world class even though he would score plenty in Scotland’s top flight. Some will say that the standard of league matters but players can score plenty in a strong league without being considered true world greats like Athletic Bilbao’s Aritz Aduriz and former Udinese hitman Antonio Di Natale.
Another question mark surrounding Kane is his standard at international level. Now the England man has a decent record of ten goals in twenty-one caps but he hasn’t exploded at a major tournament like a World Cup or a European Championships.
I think times have changed and it has become harder to peak at the big international tournaments. Has Cristiano or Messi really thrived in those competitions? I’d argue that they haven’t, yet many claim that they are the best that the game has ever seen. Yes Ronaldo won Euro 2016 with Portugal but they were ropey in the group stages and he wasn’t outstanding in that month. While Messi was good in the 2014 World Cup but again he didn’t really peak there.
The hitman scored another brace today as Spurs swept Huddersfield Town aside in a 4-0 victory. That has taken his club tally to eleven goals in nine games so far this campaign. He can score a variety of different kind of goals and when on form, no team seems able to handle him.
Last season he notched up goals against Manchester United, Chelsea, Everton and Arsenal and that shows you he can score in the bigger games. This term he has already scored five in his first two Champions League outings and that’s a competition that he knows he needed to score more in. It will be interesting to see how the forward does in the Real Madrid ties.
I think his link-up play can be improved upon and his decision making isn’t of the highest quality yet either. Kane needs to learn that he can’t shoot at every opportunity and when it’s better to pass to a teammate.
If he can improve on those things then I don’t see why he cannot become truly world class and I also think he can help Tottenham secure trophies in the next couple of seasons.
We should just enjoy the qualities that he brings to the game and watch his game evolve to even greater things.
Posted on September 30th, 2017 by scott
Filed under: Article
World class is just an expression with as much significance as saying someone is one of the best in the world. If they are scoring goals in a poor league or whatever you obviously consider that before you say it. There is no criteria so pundits talking about finite reasons whether they are yet or not world class is just total garbage and them trying to sound like experts. The guy saying he is ‘just under world class’ is a moron trying to sound like a genius.
Your point that Kane needs to be less selfish in front of goal is quite frankly, rubbish. If he were to pass more often, his goal tally would drop, that’s a fact. The best goal scorers shoot more than they pass, Shearer was the same, one of the most selfish in front of goal ever, the fact he scored 260 premier league goals proves that. Kane’s job is to score goals, not to become the assist king of No.10’s in the premier league. He does his job very well thank you, and as a Spurs fan, I don’t want him to think, shall I pass or shoot, he needs to go on instinct, that’s why he’s so prolific at the moment, I can bet that Poch has told him, shoot at goal every chance you get, Poch doesn’t want him second guessing himself and to analyse his decision making after the game, is pointless really, everything is 20/20 vision in hindsight is it not?
As for your opinion that he struggles at international level, errr what about those around him, what about how the team is set up, that has a huge affect on a goal scorer, you’ve almost said the same yourself when talking of Ronaldo etc. So, the fact is, Kane is world class, his current stats prove that, he’s not going to get worse, he may have blips yes, he may even get injured, but he’s not going to lose his touch, unless someone starts asking him to think rather than shoot and give more assists!!
Steven – My point about passing, is more about assessing certain situations better and making a pass rather than shooting from an impossible angle. All the greats did that. I certainly wouldn’t say give up a goalscoring opportunity just pass, that would be ridiculous.
I never said he struggled at international level. I just said that some people believe that tournament football is a deciding factor on being world class or not and that I didn’t agree with that assessment anymore.
Of course he is just watch him here:!!!
https://ossiesdreamer.wordpress.com/2017/09/30/watch-huddersfield-v-spurs-match-highlights/