I’LL BE A HEAD AKE FOR KANE AND ENGLAND

NATHAN AKE is on a double mission to shut out Harry Kane – for both club and country.

Bournemouth star Ake comes face-to-face with Kane today and is also set to be up against the Tottenham hitman in England’s friendly in Holland later this month.

Former Chelsea ace Ake (below), who has been included in new Holland boss Ronald Koeman’s 32-man squad for the Amsterdam clash, said: “It is always a good challenge.

“That is what you want to do – play against the best players in the league, so I am looking forward to it.

“Kane is a top player. Just look at the number of goals he has scored for four seasons in a row. He is so hard to play against and is always popping up in open spaces.

“He is so quick, very strong and you always have to be 100 per cent focused on where he is.

“It will be a good test because he is one of the toughest opponents I have played against.”

Ake has revealed Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe has been working overtime in training to cope with Kane’s aerial prowess.

Kane headed against a post during Spurs’ Champions League defeat to Juventus on Wednesday. Ake said:

“He is very strong in the air and gets in good positions to head the ball. We have been doing a lot of work in training to stop that.

“We will need to be a bit more careful as they have a lot of quality, especially up front.”

Ake is expecting a Spurs backlash following their European heartache. He said: “Tottenham will be disappointed to have gone out of the Champions League. They played very well, so it was tough on them.

“They probably cannot believe they are out, but will come determined to win the game.”

Ake credits Cherries chief Howe for making him a better player.

He said: “I review almost every match with the manager, he shows me the clips and where I can improve and that has helped make me better. He has helped me a lot.”