Kane puts Shear terror like my old team-mate
ALBERT AND SUTTON SEEING SIMILARITIES
HARRY Kane is a “goal machine” and is England’s “natural heir” to Alan Shearer, believes Newcastle United cult hero Philippe Albert.
The former Belgium defender played with Shearer at Newcastle between 1996 and 1999, and saw first hand how clinical the former England captain was.
And Albert sees the same desire to score in the current Three Lions skipper too, stressing that Kane is one of the best goal threats in the entire World Cup.
Having netted a brace during England’s 2-1 victory over Tunisia in their opening game, Kane then scored a hat-trick in the 6-1 win against Panama on Sunday to move on to five goals in Russia.
He currently leads the race for the World Cup Golden Boot, ahead of Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku, both of who have four goals.
“I had the privilege to play alongside Alan Shearer and Kane is his natural heir,” Albert (pictured) told ESPN FC.
“They are similar in many aspects – how clinical they both are, their personalities, wearing the armband. “Kane is a goal machine like Shearer. He is England’s main threat, of course.” Although Albert has been impressed by aspects of England’s attacking play, he believes Gareth Southgate’s men lack the experience to really go deep in the tournament. But the ex-Belgium international is “optimistic” about his own nation’s chances, stressing this is the moment the so-called ‘golden generation’ must deliver – starting with their final Group G decider against England on Thursday. “It is a very young English team, which means a lot of talent and enthusiasm but also a lack of experience,” Albert added.
“It could play against them against very experienced sides. On their day, they can beat anyone, though the opposite is also true.
“It should be their [Belgium’s] time. This should be the World Cup of this ‘golden generation,’ as we call it. There is still some improvement needed in the way they play, but I am optimistic.
“The question is always going to be: ‘Can they raise their game when needed as they go further in this competition?’ And I think they can.”
Meanwhile, former England striker Chris Sutton has also compared Kane’s finishing to that of former Blackburn team-mate Shearer.
The pair won the Premier League title together in 1994/95, and Sutton sees the “same single-mindedness” in Kane as he did in Shearer.
“What’s the perfect example of how to take a penalty? Harry Kane’s way,” Sutton wrote in his column in the Daily Mail.
“Watch it again. He takes the first with confidence and conviction, whipped into the top corner, rightfooted, with pace. And not just once, but twice.
“If you had asked me before Sunday about my favourite penaltytaker in my era it would be Matt le Tissier, who scored 47 of 48 penalties he took for Southampton. That is incredible.
“Of my former team-mates, Alan Shearer at Blackburn and Celtic’s Henrik Larsson were both ruthless and punished teams from the spot.
“Kane’s two spot kicks have been described as ‘Alan Shearer penalties,’ and England’s current captain has the same single-mindedness as Shearer.”