In Harry Kane’s head the Champions League final will always be an occasion that, as he put it in July, Tottenham allowed to “slide by”. They were flat from the start and it did not help that Liverpool, and the man entrusted to mark him, smelled an instant advantage. Kane was rushed back from injury and Virgil van Dijk knew where the upper hand would lie. “If you’re not 100% fit, it’ll be in your head if you get a bit of a knock or you get a bit of pain when you pass it,” the centre-back said later. “I expected him to play the final, but not at 100%.”
When they meet again on Sunday afternoon Kane should be at full tilt even if Spurs look some distance short of the side that bounced to Madrid. It was not Kane’s fault he could not deliver when their greatest achievement was in sight but the team’s form offers a convincing argument that Mauricio Pochettino needs him just as badly now. In recent times it has not been easy, when the Spurs manager scans the faces in his dressing room, to work out exactly who he can hang his hat on. But there has never been any doubt about Kane’s fierce commitment to the cause, even when there are those who will happily test the quality of the pegging.
Related: Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino says 5-0 win is a ‘first step’
Related: Unlikely Liverpool heroes underscore Jürgen Klopp’s rich array of options
Continue reading...