‘I want to be even greater than Messi’
HARRY KANE is aiming to put Lionel Messi in the shade tonight.
At Wembley in the Champions League, the Tottenham striker comes face-to-face with the Barcelona superstar for the first time.
And the England captain wants to prove he is worthy of being mentioned in the same breath as one of the game’s all-time greats.
“It motivates me to get even better and improve, and one day score as many if not more than he has,” said Kane.
“He’s definitely set the standard for the rest of us. Him and Cristiano Ronaldo have gone above what other people have set in the years gone past.
“Scoring as many goals as Messi – 40, 50 or 60 goals a season – as a striker, I want to try and match that.
“You want to play against the best players in the world and Messi is certainly a fantastic player.”
Spurs, who welcome back goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, will have to be on their guard to stop Messi, who has scored 20 times in 28 games against English opposition. Although Kane trails Messi by a long way in terms of career goals, if he scores twice tonight he will have reached double figures in the Champions League in 11 fewer games.
And Kane has called on Spurs fans to recreate the same magical Wembley atmosphere that helped them beat Real Madrid 3-1 this time last year in the group stage. “Barcelona might play better than Real Madrid did last season,” said Kane.
“Real Madrid was a great night for us. The crowd were amazing for us and that’s what we need again.
“I’m sure it will be a full house. We need to get them on their feet, create some chances and hopefully take one to put us in a strong position for the rest of the night.
“We’ve got to prove we can beat the best teams in the world and we need to do that against Barcelona.”
Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino said that brilliant Real win is not something his men needed to be reminded of to boost their confidence.
“We are in a different period,” he said. “For the players who played it was the most important game they had played. But now they have played in the World Cup.
“The past is the past. The most important thing is how we can affect the present and future.
“You cannot motivate now in the same way we did one year ago, even if they are the same players.
“Football is not a drama. The most important thing is to be focused and competitive but enjoying the opportunity to play against the best player in the world like Messi.
“It is a massive opportunity so we must be optimistic and happy and smile when we go on to the pitch and not to be too serious.”