Before the start of the 2014-15 Premier League season, Harry Kane was the brunt of harmless jokes by Spurs fans.
“Harry Kane is better than Messi!”
“Harry Kane is the best striker in the world!”
“Harry Kane is the only player who could spit on himself after launching a ball in the stands at Old Trafford.”
Those were all statements uttered in jest by the fans of the club he grew up supporting. They were not mocking him, but they were innocent jokes. Spurs fans liked him, but he had doubters. After the season he has had, they now love him.
When Kane was given his chance last season towards the end of Tim Sherwood’s tenure, he scored three goals in six games. That was just the start. Before a Europa League match against Benfica when Kane was given a surprise start, Sherwood compared him to Wayne Rooney. He was ridiculed and his comments were dismissed as a public attempt to boost Kane’s confidence. You can argue now that Kane, based on his first season, is comparable to Wayne Rooney although he still has a way to go yet.
This season, Kane went from a punchline to someone to be taken very seriously, especially by Premier League defenders. Under Mauricio Pochettino, Kane grew into a star and his 31 goals in all competitions, as well as his passionate celebrations and his subdued personal life have all been well documented.
“I think Harry’s challenge for next season is to try to score the same number of goals again – or more,” Pochettino recently said.
“We need to push him to try to do that.”
Kane’s next step is to avoid being a one-season wonder; he must ensure that his progression continues.
Here’s how he can do it.
Keep working hard
Eidur Gudjohnsen, who trained with Kane while the Icelander was training at Spurs in 2010, did not think much of Kane.
“He was 16 or 17 when I was there. He was training with the first team on a couple of occasions,” Gudjohnsen said.
“And I will be honest. I didn’t see what he would develop into at this stage of his career. I just didn’t see the natural ability.
“A few years later what you see if someone who works very hard, whose finishing is exceptional, and who has got the desire to score goals.”
While he has raw ability, Kane’s success has come via hard work and dedication to what he does. He puts in the hard yards in training every day and always looks for ways to improve his game.
If Harry is going to have an exceptional season in 2015-16, he will have to work hard and find a way to add new dimensions to his game as defenders will no doubt be working him out.
Movement is key
“I spend the entire 90 minutes looking for space on the pitch,” says the footballing legend Xavi.
Harry Kane is good at finding space for himself but will find that space harder to come by as teams will look to double-team him next season. He will have to be busier than usual.
Movement will be key to finding space and Kane will have to look to make ghosting runs vertically, horizontally and diagonally behind defenders. He must also seek to create space not only for himself but for the three attacking midfielders behind him. He must also not let his finishing level drop as chances will be fewer, so he will need to be more clinical.
Create chemistry with his teammates
Many times last season, Kane’s goals have come from brilliant individual efforts. Not as much as Gareth Bale, but still quite a few. Next season, as previously mentioned, Kane will be monitored much closely by defenders. In order to combat this, he and his teammates, especially the three attacking midfielders who play behind him, will have to form chemistry. If Kane is going to have a good second season, these three attacking midfielders will have to attract some of the defenders’ attention and Kane, as well as the trio, will have to formulate good chemistry and movement patterns to create space and to ensure Kane is not isolated and stuck under the nose of two centre-backs.
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