Harry Kane has taken to life in the Bundesliga like the proverbial duck to water. After just five matches, the England striker had already broken a record held by Gerd Muller, Miroslav Klose and Mario Mundzukic.
Kane’s seven goals in his first five appearances broke the record held by the three legends which previously stood at five goals. It’s now clear to all those in the Bundesliga just why Bayern dug deep into their finances to secure the England man. And it’s now also clear just why Spurs fought so hard to try and keep hold of their record goalscorer.
But what of Spurs now? How are they doing without Harry Kane? Well, the answer is that they are doing okay.
Harry Who?
Tottenham fans are already saying Harry Who? Spurs have started the 2023/24 Premier League season very impressively.
They’ve been in the top four places throughout and are now regarded as one of the four betting favourites with the bookmakers to finish in the Champions League places. In the latest EPL winner odds, Spurs are 13/1. That puts them behind Manchester City (4/7), Liverpool (5/1) and Arsenal (5/1). But way clear of fifth favourite, Newcastle United, who are 30/1.
In betting to finish in the top four, Spurs are again the fourth favourite. Manchester City are 1/40, Liverpool and Arsenal are both 1/3, with Spurs at 1/1. Remarkably, Tottenham are doing better without Harry Kane, than they did with him.
Reasons for Spurs revival
New manager Ange Postecoglou has had an immediate positive impact on the club. The former Celtic boss has breathed new life into the team, and one of his best decisions so far has been to give the club captaincy to Son Heung-min.
The 31-year-old has been a revelation. And alongside Son, Richarlison and James Maddison have been in excellent form.
Brazil’s Richarlison seems to have put his recent troubles behind him and is now becoming the player Spurs thought they were getting when they signed him from Everton in 2022. He still needs goals, but his game is all of a sudden improving every week.
As for James Maddison, it’s long been known he is a top-class Premier League player, the only question was, just how good is he? The answer is, very good, as he has so far been exceptional for Spurs.
Between them, Son, Richarlison and Spurs new boy Maddison are doing fine without Harry Kane. And have already turned Spurs into top-four contenders.
What if Kane had stayed at Spurs?
It was pretty clear that Harry Kane had outgrown Spurs and needed the challenge of joining an elite big club. Harry Kane needs to be winning league titles and competing regularly in the Champions League. Bayern Munich can give him both, and it was a move that suited both parties.
As for what would have happened had Kane stayed at Spurs, it’s hard to say. As he has shown during his short time in Germany, Harry Kane is the consummate professional. There is a good chance he would have kept his head down and carried on scoring goals for Spurs.
But Tottenham would have had an unhappy player on their hands. That would have filtered through the dressing room, and who knows what impact it would have had on the likes of Son, Richarlison and Maddison.
People will no doubt speculate that Spurs would be doing better if Kane had stayed. But the truth is, we will never know. Two things that do look certain though, is that Kane is enjoying life at Bayern, and Spurs are enjoying life without Kane.
