Over the years much has been made about Harry Kane being released by Arsenal as an eight-year-old.
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Kane, 24, recently spoke about the moment he was let go by the Gunners as a young lad and the drive it gave him to succeed as he went on to join Tottenham’s academy where he was nurtured into one of the greatest strikers the Premier League, and England, has ever seen.
Given the fact that Kane is leading the PL in scoring with 23 goals this season following his solitary goal in Spurs’ 1-0 North London Derby win against Arsenal on Saturday (his seventh goal in seven PL games against Arsenal, might we add), now seems like a good time to look at why he didn’t make the cut at Arsenal.
Arsenal legend and former youth director Liam Brady spoke to Italian outlet Corriere della Sera about the reason why Kane was released as a youngster.
“He was a bit chubby, he wasn’t very athletic but we made a mistake,” Brady said. “But Tottenham sent him out on loan to lower-division clubs three or four times as well. But through his determination he has carved out an amazing career and he deserves it. He has a character that drives him to improve all the time. After (Lionel) Messi, (Cristiano) Ronaldo and (Robert) Lewandowski there is him. The numbers say it. And he’s only 24 years old.”
Love a north London derby. 😀⚽#COYS #THFC #Premierleague #NLD pic.twitter.com/LNI8KDV2IH
— Harry Kane (@HKane) February 10, 2018
Kane has won the PL’s Golden Boot as the top scorer in each of the past two seasons, has scored 101 Premier League goals for Spurs so far and was the top scorer in Europe’s top five leagues in all competitions last season with 56 goals.
He has 32 goals to his name this season already and will lead England at the 2018 World Cup this summer.
Every time Arsenal fans circulate a photo of a young Harry Kane wearing an Arsenal jersey (search for it on social media, it’s not hard to find), the main aim is to antagonize Spurs fans about how their hero was on the opposite side of the North London divide growing up.
Now, that photo should really strike sorrow into the hearts of all who love Arsenal as they wonder what might have been had they given a young chubby lad a chance...