WHAT started off as a bit of light-hearted joshing about Harry Kane is turning into a sick joke.
The England captain, 30, left his boyhood club Spurs in the summer to go to Bayern Munich where he would be as guaranteed as you can be in football of ending his trophy hoodoo.
Some laughed: “But what if he takes his silverware jinx with him to Bavaria?” — not for one minute thinking it might actually happen.
Yet here we are, past the midway point of the Bundesliga season. And somehow, despite Kane’s record-breaking goals haul, Bayern are seven points off the top and out of the cup.
In the wake of Sunday’s shock slip-up at home to Werder Bremen, a column in Germany’s leading tabloid Bild yesterday read: “The question has to be seriously asked: Will Bayern now also suffer the curse of Harry Kane?”
The article went on to point out that none of what has happened to Bayern this term is his fault — and rightly so.
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Kane has been magnificent for his new side, banging in 26 goals in 24 games — including a jaw-dropping 22 in 17 league matches. But even he must be starting to wonder if the footballing gods are punishing him for a crime in a previous life.
His barren trophy run could have been over instantly as he made his debut in the German Super Cup against RB Leipzig but found himself on the wrong side of a 3-0 scoreline thanks to Dani Olmo’s hat-trick.
Scarcely-believable embarrassment was suffered at the hands of third-tier side Saarbrucken in the German Cup, who dumped Bayern out with a 2-1 win.
Bayern’s league campaign would actually not look so bad were it not for the stellar efforts of table-topping Bayer Leverkusen, managed by Xabi Alonso.
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And Munich remain in the hunt for the greatest club prize of all as they face Lazio in the Champions League last 16 next month.
But the way they are playing right now, nothing is assured. Boss Thomas Tuchel is certainly feeling the heat as a result.
Bayern’s CEO Jan-Christian Dreesen is not known for making outlandish statements but he described his side’s football for the first 70 minutes of Sunday’s defeat by lowly Werder as “boring”, that the team played a “bad game” and “didn’t show the attitude you have to show”.
Alarm bells should be ringing out now for Tuchel, who is yet to stamp his identity on the team and could oversee Bayern’s first trophyless since 2011-12.
It is not a case of £104million signing Kane being a one-man band — like he was for Antonio Conte’s Tottenham side last season — because Leroy Sane is flourishing.
But question marks have been raised about the lack of creativity as well as problems in defence and midfield.
Under-pressure Tuchel needs a response in tonight’s home game against Union Berlin.
‘IT’S NOT EASY’
He said: “We can do a lot better, there’s a lot of room for improvement.
“It’s not a case of simply flipping a switch. It’s not easy.
“We’re very aware of the state of play. It’s our job and my responsibility to influence it. We’re actually very positive but we are falling well short of our expectations in matches.
“We will continue to demand it until it works and we’re ready to show the desire that will also spark the fans. We’re below our expectations.”
Leverkusen have a history of hiccups and Bayern are hoping that proves the case again this season to allow them to secure their 12th successive Bundesliga triumph.
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But all of a sudden, Kane and Co look right up against it to ensure they do not end the campaign potless.
This was not how it was supposed to go for the Three Lions skipper.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
