This guest post was written by Zach Lowy, Chief Editor and Social Media Manager of BreakingTheLines.com. Zach is a successful journalist and can be followed at @ZachLowy on X and @zachlowy.bsky.social on Bluesky. Zach’s work can also be found on FotMob, BetUS and others.
Whisper it quietly, but it seems that the coast is clear for Bayern Munich. After a challenging end to January that saw them lose to Augsburg and draw to HSV, Bayern have since demolished Hoffenheim 5-0 and Werder Bremen 3-0, in addition to defeating RB Leipzig 2-0 and advancing to the DFB-Pokal semifinals. And on Saturday, they solidified their grasp on the Bundesliga title with a 3-0 victory against Eintracht Frankfurt. The Bavarian giants are all but guaranteed to claim their 13th championship in 14 years, and one man who is having a vital role is Harry Kane.
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When Bayern paid a league-record €110 million for Kane in the summer of 2023 – already the all-time leading scorer of England and Tottenham Hotspur – the expectation was that Kane would immediately power them to silverware. Kane immediately established himself as the best player in the Bundesliga, claiming the European Golden Shoe with 44 goals and 12 assists in 45 appearances under Thomas Tuchel, but he was unable to back up his performances with silverware as Bayer Leverkusen achieved a historic domestic double. Nevertheless, Kane refused to wallow in misery and instead continued his stellar displays under Vincent Kompany with an astonishing 41 goals and 14 assists in 51 appearances. It was enough to see him guide Bayern back to the zenith of German football, and it was enough to see him win the fifth Golden Boot of his career (not including his top scorer award from the 2018 World Cup and 2024 Euros).
After claiming the very first trophy of his entire career, the reigning Bundesliga Player of the Season winner has somehow managed to take his performances up another level, opening the scoring in Bayern’s 2-1 victory at Stuttgart in the DFL-Supercup, before firing a hat-trick in his Bundesliga opener vs. RB Leipzig. Even at nearly 33 years of age, Kane looks fitter and fresher than ever before, and the proof is in the pudding. Having kicked off the new year with a goal and an assist vs. Wolfsburg, a goal at Leipzig, a goal at HSV, a goal at PSV, and a brace vs. Union Saint-Gilloise, Kane opened February with a brace and an assist vs. Hoffenheim before breaking the deadlock from the penalty spot against Leipzig. He was back at it in the following two matches, scoring an early brace in Bremen and reaching 500 total career goals, before adding 501 and 502 against Eintracht Frankfurt.
Kane leads all players with 6 goals in the DFB-Pokal, two above second-placed Leopold Querfeld, whilst he also sits third in the UEFA Champions League top scorer race with 8 goals, behind only Anthony Gordon (10) and Kylian Mbappé (13) – in addition to sitting behind both players for goal contributions (8) – as well as leading all players for penalties won (2). It’s been more of the same in the Bundesliga, with Kane leading all players with 21.15 Expected Goals, 33 goal contributions, 2.4 shots on target per game, 2 penalties won, and 14 big chances missed. Only Deniz Undav (4.3) is racking up more shots per game than him (4.0), whilst no player comes close to Kane’s scoring frequency of a goal every 66 minutes. Even if Kane were to tear his Achilles tomorrow and miss the rest of the year, he’d all but certainly end up with the Kicker-Torjägerkanone – Kane has scored 28 Bundesliga goals, more than twice as many as second-placed Luis Díaz (13).
Whilst Kane has played with some incredibly exciting frontlines in his career, this current Bayern attack might very well be the best of the bunch. With Jamal Musiala back to full fitness, with Díaz and Michael Olise causing danger from either flank with their sensational dribbling skills and explosive pace, and with the likes of Serge Gnabry and Lennart Karl chipping in, Kane doesn’t have to do it all by himself. Opponents know that it’s not enough to shut down Kane – they have to nullify Bayern’s other world-class attackers – and this, in turn, gives Kane more freedom and space to do what he does best. Whether it’s dropping deep and breaking the lines with his incisive through balls, or latching onto a long ball with a well-executed control, or timing his run to perfection and striking home a perfect half-volley, Kane checks just about every single box as a striker.
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He belongs in the upper echelon of the world’s best strikers alongside the likes of Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland, although there’s reason to believe that he’s even more of a well-rounded, complete profile than the aforementioned forwards. Kane’s elite goal-scoring quality has often papered over the cracks for Bayern, meaning that, even on an off day, they’re still able to bring home the victory. With just 11 matches remaining, the Bavarians sit atop the league table with 60 points, eight points above Borussia Dortmund and 14 above Hoffenheim, and they’ve done so thanks to an overpowering attack that has scored 85 goals already, well ahead of second-placed Borussia Dortmund and Hoffenheim (49).
It remains to be seen whether or not Kane can lead Bayern to their first UEFA Champions League title in six years, or if he can spearhead England to their first FIFA World Cup in 60 years, but one thing’s for sure: barring something historic, Kane will become the second player in Bundesliga history to win three straight Bundesliga Golden Boots after a certain Robert Lewandowski. And with a 10-point advantage over Mbappé, he’s well on his way to claiming the second European Golden Shoe of his career.
This guest post was written by Zach Lowy, Chief Editor and Social Media Manager of BreakingTheLines.com. Zach is a successful journalist and can be followed at @ZachLowy on X and @zachlowy.bsky.social on Bluesky. Zach’s work can also be found on FotMob, BetUS and others.
You can also read some of Zach’s other work below:
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