KANE IS READY FOR THE FIRST BELL
Bayern legend: Harry must be at his best to KO Madrid
HARRY KANE and Jude Bellingham are the star attractions of Tuesday’s Champions League semi-final firecracker between Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.
That is the view of former Bayern central defender Holger Badstuber, who lifted the prestigious trophy at Wembley in 2013 following a gutsy 2-1 win over Borussia Dortmund.
And now he hopes England captain Kane will follow suit by delivering the goals to fire the Bavarian giants past Los Blancos.
Badstuber (above) said: “Yes, there is pressure but when you think about great strikers, they perform in these matches.
“When you want to win the Champions League, you need a player like Kane and in both semifinal matches, they will need his goals.
“That’s why he’s very important now and, while there’s a lot of pressure on his shoulders, I think he can handle it.”
Club-record signing Kane has already hit 40 goals in all competitions, however, Badstuber feels there has been room for improvement in some matches that have defined Bayern’s domestic campaign as they surrendered their title to Bayer Leverkusen.
The former Germany international said: “His impact has been great, especially at the beginning of the season.
“He quickly integrated into the team and adapted to the German culture – that’s not as easy as it sounds.
“But in the second half of the season, especially in the big games against Borussia Dortmund and
Bayer Leverkusen, his impact was not as big.” Leverkusen have romped their way to the Bundesliga title, while Bayern were also embarrassingly eliminated from the DFB Pokal in just the second round by thirdtier outfit FC Saarbrucken. Bayern are parting company with boss Thomas Tuchel this summer, a year before his contract was due to expire. Despite a forgettable year, Badstuber still believes his old side have the tools to go the distance in Europe. He said: “The Bundesliga was not very good from Bayern’s perspective. There were a lot of ups and downs with results but the Champions League is different. “They have a chance to reach the final as it’s also about momentum and now the momentum is there. They can beat Real Madrid.”
While Bellingham dazzled in Dortmund, Badstuber has been blown away by the 20-year-old’s stunning impact at Real Madrid.
Badstuber said: “He’s adapted very, very fast to the Spanish culture and the special environment at Real Madrid.
“Bellingham is focused, we know about his potential but the development has been extremely fascinating for me because he is so tough and his playing IQ is very high.
“He is given huge freedom at Real Madrid, can play everywhere on the field and at the start of the season he was scoring almost every game.”
Badstuber claims there are no doubts England can win the Euros with Kane and Bellingham firing on all cylinders. He said: “This squad is very strong, it’s very bright and the quality is there.
“They’re contenders, no doubt about it, and the German people think this too.”