Jermain Defoe has admitted that the first word he thought when he saw Harry Kane training as a young Tottenham player was "wow".
Kane, now 29, is set to captain England to another World Cup this month, having won the Golden Boot at the last tournament in Russia in 2018. The nation's hopes will rest on the striker as he also chases down Wayne Rooney's status as England's record goalscorer. His 51 goals so far are just two short of Rooney and in almost half the appearances.
With 12 goals in 15 Premier League matches this season, Kane also continues to edge closer to the all-time Tottenham goalscoring record, moving on to 261 goals and just five away from equalling the late Jimmy Greaves.
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While some who used to be at Tottenham when Kane was making his first steps as a professional say they could not see the talent that would later emerge in the forward, Defoe told William Hill’s Stripped Podcast that he could see his finishing ability from the beginning when the duo were at the club together.
"Harry’s goalscoring ability is natural, you can’t teach that. I remember the first time I saw Harry when he trained with the first team at Spurs, I was like ‘wow’," he said. "He was just hitting corners, that was natural. The way he finishes is like [Alan] Shearer. He scored a lot of goals, but he just put his foot through the ball.
"For someone like Harry Kane, they’re just clean, calculated finishes in the corner. The goal against Liverpool the other week, just a little touch and finish. He knows exactly what he’s doing, he doesn’t just want to hit the target. He’s taken his game to another level."
Defoe, now an academy coach at Spurs, is happy with the England squad Gareth Southgate has selected for the tournament in Qatar.
"I just wanted [James] Maddison to go. I think he had to go with his form, you talk about numbers and his stats and goals compared to everyone else in his position, he had to go. Callum Wilson also had to go with his form and the amount of goals he’s scored," he said.
"I think it’s a strong squad to be honest. I’m happy to see [Marcus] Rashford back and looking sharp again and hungry. Last season you could just see he had the handbrake on. To see him smiling and playing well again, I’m happy for him."
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