HARRY KANE has been criticised in the German media after enduring a difficult week.
The former Tottenham striker, 31, was in action as Bayern Munich fell to a 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa in the Champions League.
He also featured as Bayern drew 1-1 with Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen last weekend.
Kane has netted ten times in eight appearances in all competitions so far this season, while also laying on five assists.
After going scoreless in the crunch matches against Villa and Leverkusen, however, the England captain has received some scrutiny.
In his column for Sky Germany, former Premier League midfielder Dietmar Hamann questioned whether Kane has been a good signing for his former side Bayern.
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Hamann, who also played for Manchester City, Liverpool and Newcastle, wrote: “Harry Kane had a personally sobering evening in Birmingham – in addition to the defeat.
“I said after the European Championship in the summer that he still has to prove that he is worth the 100 million – even though he scored over 30 goals last year.”
Hamann then appeared to suggest that Kane, who was denied by a last-gasp Emi Martinez save at Villa Park, only scores against weaker opposition.
The forward bagged four times against Dinamo Zagreb last month, in addition to netting a treble vs Holstein Kiel.
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Hamann continued: “He wasn’t brought in to score a hat-trick against Darmstadt.
“He was brought in to score against Leverkusen and Aston Villa and to score in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
“He hasn’t done that yet. I remain sceptical about the star striker.”
Kane is both Tottenham and England’s all-time leading goalscorer.
He scored 280 goals in 435 appearances for Spurs before leaving in the summer of 2023, and has so far plundered 68 in 100 England caps.
His scoring record has remained incredible since signing for Bayern, averaging more than a goal a game with 54 in 53 appearances.
But Kane’s side failed to win the Bundesliga or DFB Pokal last season, and fell narrowly in the Champions League semi-finals to eventual winners Real Madrid.
The forward did score in the tie against the Spanish giants, before having to go off late on in the second-half with a back injury that would continue to bother him during Euro 2024.
He also scored as Bayern eliminated Arsenal in the quarter-finals.
Despite criticism faced in Germany, an incredible stat shows that Kane DOES score against the big teams.
Within the last year, Kane has the most goal involvements across Europe’s five major leagues.
He has found the back of the net 38 times and turned provider on 11 occasions.
On him allegedly not showing up for the big games, Kane scored eight goals in 12 Champions League matches last season, with four coming in the knockout stages.
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And in the Bundesliga, he scored eight times against last term’s top four finishers Leverkusen, Stuttgart and RB Leipzig.
Kane and Co return to action this Sunday, when they travel to Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
