KANE CAN DO IT ALL, JUST LIKE SHEARER

I PLAYED alongside Alan Shearer and Henrik Larsson. What set them apart was that they had no fear.

There was no chink in their armour. They had such belief in their own ability and were never afraid to miss. I see the same in Harry Kane.

When Shearer got in and around the box, you knew he would score. His accuracy was deadly and he struck the ball with immense power.

Kane has similar confidence in his finishing. If he gets within 25 metres of goal with his head up, you’re in trouble.

All three of Kane’s strikes at Hull were with his less-favoured left foot.

For his first goal he made it look so easy, the way he shifted the ball and lashed it in. He clearly doesn’t have a weak foot – and you could argue his left is better than Shearer’s! Of any Premier League player today, it is Kane who has the best chance of breaking Shearer’s remarkable record of 260 goals.

Kane has raced to 78 Premier League goals in just 116 games – Shearer needed 192 to reach that total in the top flight.

I played against Shearer when he was at Southampton and it is easy to forget that he was hardly prolific in his early days. It was only when he went to Blackburn that it really started to happen for him but he grafted incredibly hard to become a top-class striker.

His consistency year in, year out was phenomenal. It will be tough for Kane to replicate that – he would need to remain injury-free and score 20 goals a year for the next nine seasons – but what works in his favour is that his game is not reliant on pace.

I am not saying he is slow, but Kane’s greatest strength is his intelligence and the positions he takes up. That will only help his longevity.

He is a true all-rounder in terms of the goals he scores. He shoots early, catching the keeper unawares and his accuracy is deadly. He nicks into the box to get tap-ins and headers, too.

Shearer and Larsson were always hungry for more and I see that attitude in Kane.

This is a man who has confounded his doubters time and again, from his first steps in football as a wiry 17-year-old on loan at Leyton Orient and a year later at Millwall to the way he bounced back after a disappointing Euro 2016. He has been the Premier League’s best striker for three years.

He is always looking to improve. Kane edges Shearer in terms of link-up play. As an adaptable, allround footballer he reminds me of Larsson. In terms of striking they are very similar – natural finishers and good in the air – but Larsson’s eye to slide a pass was equally superb.

Kane’s outstanding form will not have escaped Europe’s elite. For Real Madrid, you would have to say Kane is an upgrade on Karim Benzema. I would hope Tottenham are brave enough to ward off any bids and launch an assault on the Premier League next season. They have a real chance if they can keep this young team together – but if Kane and Dele Alli are allowed to leave, it could be the end of Spurs as a top-four club.

Kane is only 23 and will keep improving, regardless of where his future lies. – Daily Mail