LONDON โ Harry Kaneโs record-breaking 2017 wouldnโt be possible without one thing: his relentless drive.
Kane, 24, scored 39 Premier League goals in the calendar year to break Alan Shearerโs record as the Tottenham Hotspur forward bagged a hat trick at Wembley on Boxing Day to break the record in style.
More impressive than his penchant for scoring goals of all types, leading the line tirelessly and dropping deeper to open up space for others to exploit is his drive and determination to get even better in 2018.
After bursting onto the scene in 2014-15 following various loan spells at lower-tier clubs, Kane was dubbed a โone season wonderโ by opposition fans across the Premier League. Kane now has two-straight Golden Boots in the PL and is on course for a third-straight as well as being Englandโs main man, and probably their captain, at the 2018 World Cup next summer, plus driving Spurs on in the knockout stages in the UEFA Champions League.
The doubters fueled his determination to become the leading marksman on the planet in 2017, a year which also saw him as the only Englishman nominated for the Ballon dโOr.
โDoes that still spur me on? Probably, itโs always in the back of my mind,โ Kane told reporters in the tunnel area at Wembley on Boxing Day. โIโve always said that when people doubt me I want to prove them wrong whether itโs at a young age or now, thatโs just my mindset, something in me since a young age. Iโll keep getting better, keep trying to improve. Iโll keep doing it for nine, 10 seasons and see where it takes me.โ
Kaneโs record of 56 goals in 52 appearances for club and country in 2017 surpasses what Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Roberto Lewandowski and Edinson Cavani have achieved. Heโs top of the tree in the soccer pantheon right now, in terms of goals and attacking play, and thatโs where he plans to stay for the next decade.
โWhen you look at Messi and Ronaldo, Iโve obviously still got a long way to go before I can be compared to them but itโs a start and thatโs what I want to do, keep improving and be up there one day,โ Kane said. โThatโs always the goal, to be bracketed with the best players in the world. Messi and Ronaldo have set that standard for so long now. To nick ahead is something Iโm proud of and itโs just the start for me. I want to do it year in, year out. Theyโve done it for eight, nine years now so be classed in that bracket, thatโs what Iโve got to do. Thatโs my aim.โ
His manager at Spurs, Mauricio Pochettino, waxed lyrical about Kaneโs achievements in 2017 and believes he is now โin the same companyโ of Ronaldo and Messi because of the hard work and dedication the Englishman puts into training each and every day.
Kane is humble and focused when he talks to the media, with his latest match ball for a treble being held by a Spurs employee in a plastic bag as he smiled and joked about what he had for his Christmas dinner.
He is efficient and deadly when he plays. You never see him in trouble in the tabloids. Off the pitch he is totally dedicated to getting the best out of his career. He is, in many respects, the complete package and the epitome of a role model to not only youngsters but current pros and his teammates.
I remember just before he burst onto the scene, he was given a run in Spursโ first team by Tim Sherwood at the end of the 2013-14 season. In one game he suffered a head injury. Kane raced over to the touchline to get his head bandaged up and a new shirt on and was desperate to get back on the pitch and help out his team as Sherwood barked out orders.
After Kaneโs hat trick on Boxing Day his teammates spoke to the media in the tunnel area of Wembley and were somewhat in awe of his achievements in 2017.
Tottenhamโs captain Hugo Lloris, who has played with the likes of Thierry Henry and Antoine Griezmann among many other great forwards in his career, believes Kane is the best.
โIโve never played with a striker capable of scoring so many goals in a year. Iโve played with a lot of top strikers and probably he is the best Iโve played with,โ Lloris said. โHe deserves all the praise at the moment. Now the most difficult part is coming because he needs to stick at this level. But with his mentality and quality I have no doubt he will do that. He is one of the best and he is going to keep showing it.โ
Lloris continued: โIf he scores one goal in a game, he wants two or three. This is his mentality. Heโs a goal machine. Itโs his target. When he enters the pitch, he focuses on that. His job is to score goals and itโs his mentality every day. The perception from outside is different now. He has more attention from the fans and media. But he has a good head on his shoulders and a lot of humility and thatโs the key. He will keep working hard and Iโm sure he will break more records if he does.โ
Dele Alli, so often Kaneโs partner in crime, told Pro Soccer Talk that Kane could break more records in 2018.
โHarry is one of those players that just because heโs broken one record, heโs not going to stop now,โ Alli smiled. โHe is going to keep going and working hard every day. Who knows, next year in 2018 he might break it again.โ
Kaneโs incredible goalscoring record is only half the story. His dedication and relentless drive to burst onto the scene in his early 20s is what is driving him to be among the best on the planet.
The conversation about whether or not he is world class is over. Now he is trying to prove heโs the best center forward on the planet.
