Harry Kane has challenged his Tottenham team-mates to prove how they have matured under Antonio Conte in tonight’s Champions League clash against Eintracht Frankfurt.
Spurs have not been convincing on their return to the competition, beating Marseille at home only after the French side were reduced to 10 men, then losing at Sporting Lisbon and drawing 0-0 in Germany last week.
With a tricky visit to Marseille in their final group game, the back-to-back home fixtures against Frankfurt and Sporting are crucial to Spurs’s hopes of reaching the knockout stage.
Kane has acknowledged that the pressure is on to step up under lights tonight and says it is time for the team to show their improved mentality since Conte took over.
“I think it’s changed a lot [under Conte], I think we’ve really tried to change the mentality of the club, not just the players, the whole club in general, and I think we’ve had a good impact on that,” said Kane. “We still have room to improve, for sure, in all departments. Antonio is a top, top coach.
“I feel like we have worked a lot tactically and physically and we’re really growing into mature players, but the bottom line is we have to prove that on the pitch and we have to show that in games like tonight, in games like tonight, when the pressure’s on. We have to be able to perform under those circumstances and that’s what we’re looking to do.”
Kane has made his joint-best start to a League campaign, scoring eight goals in nine games, but is yet to find the net in Europe.
“It’s a really important game,” he added. “Big stage in the group, two home games coming up, and we’ve spoken about how important it is to win and really put our stamp on this group. From a personal point of view, I want to score in every game and I’ll be trying my best to do that to help the team. I’ve been disappointed not to get on the scoresheet, so I’m hoping tonight I can turn it around.”
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There are just 40 days until Kane leads England in their opening World Cup fixture against Iran in Qatar, but tonight’s match is the first of 10 Spurs fixtures until the Premier League pauses for the tournament. Kane insists the looming World Cup is not a distraction from his club commitments.
“We have such a hectic schedule,” Kane said. “We work so hard towards each game that we play for our club. The World Cup isn’t something I’m really thinking about.”
Conte called on his side to “exploit” the games against Frankfurt and Sporting to ensure he reaches the knockouts as a coach for only the third time in eight seasons in the competition.
“This group has great balance,” Conte said. “There has to be only one thought: to go to the next round. We have to show we deserve to go through.”