Harry Kane and Tottenham’s goalscoring record: Can he handle the pressure?

It all started against Shamrock Rovers.

Danny Rose sends a cross, Andrew Townsend Head pillows and there Harry KaneSmart, instinctive, tidy finish at the turn. go alone.

The 266th goal would come just 11 years later and equal Jimmy Greaves Tottenham Hotspur The scoring record, which has stood for 53 years. The numbers are impressive and the fact that Kane is still only 29 years old adds depth to the achievement.

He is a relentless goal-scoring machine that shows no signs of abating, with his 15 league goals to date in 2022-23 equaling his best tally at this point in the season (18 appearances).

It will also break the England Register soon. It will break a lot of other records too, as you can imagine.

But what does it feel like to be approached by such an enormous and iconic landmark? We’re all talking about it, but how far would Ken think about it? Would even someone like Ken, who appears to be completely unhinged, focused and frugal, feel the pressure? Let’s not forget that the goal can be big, looking in the face of Tottenham Arsenal (once) f Manchester city (twice) in their next five matches.

“First of all, it’s a lot of pressure,” says Alan Shearer, who broke Jackie Milburn’s work. Newcastle United record against Portsmouth In February 2006, he appeared before he retired.

Because, in Harry’s case, you’re about to equal or take over one of the most – if not the Most notable scorers of all time in Jimmy Greaves. It’s similar to me and Jackie Melbourne although it took a little longer than Harry Kane.”

While fans and the media will be constantly talking about records, numbers, and milestones, you’ll often hear players get out of line thinking about their next game, their next goal. “It would be a nice thing to do but that’s the kind of thing you’re thinking about when you retire,” would be a written response.

Glenn Murray came within 12 goals of a break Brightonthe all-time scoring record, which has stood since George V ascended the throne in 1929. When Murray returned to the Seagulls in 2016-17, having scored 57 goals in three seasons in his first spell, talk began breaking Tommy Cook’s tally of 123, especially when he scored 23 goals in that campaign.

“It was a pain, honestly,” Murray admits. “There was a lot of talk about it, I just wanted to get rid of it – it was something I thought was for the future rather than the present.

“The first goal was to hit 100 goals and also broke the post-war record (set by Kate Napier who scored 99), people talk a lot about it because it hasn’t been done for a long time, I’ve passed some of Brighton’s modern-day greats like Bobby Zamora, and yeah I wanted to make it happen but more for something to come back to when I retire.

“It would have been nice to break the all-time record, but it’s not a pity I didn’t (Murray left Brighton in February 2021 and retired at the end of that season). I got to No. 111 which seems appropriate… He’s just getting off the tongue! And getting a record Post-war is great.To be honest, I would never have dreamed of being a goalscorer at any club, let alone a Premier League club.

“As a striker, you don’t get emotional about those things when you play. If you score 100, you want 101 and then 102, it’s boring, but that’s the mentality that got you to that point in your career, so you don’t suddenly stop and settle. You focus on scoring goals.” .It’s a hobby.”

Everyone is different. Ian Wright moved into one of Arsenal’s numbers at almost 60 when he scored twice past Cliff Bastin. Coventry At the beginning of the 1997-98 season. Then he failed to score against him SouthamptonAnd lester And yes, Tottenham, before smashing it in brilliant style against Bolton.

“People were saying the record was getting to me, and now I can look back and say, ‘Yeah, it was eating me up,’” he said at the time. “But those close to me, like Dennis Bergkamp, ​​kept telling me to keep quiet and it would come.

Given the tough clinical stance Kean has maintained ever since world Cupalthough a missed penalty FranceYou can’t imagine him being currently distracted by the prospect of breaking Greaves’ record, having scored four goals in four games since football resumed after the tournament. He probably won’t score in his next three matches and will be accused of feeling under pressure. But it seems highly unlikely.

Murray was at Selhurst Park recently to watch Kane score goals of 263 and 264 in Tottenham’s 4-0 win over Crystal Palace.

“In terms of this season, I feel Erling HallandIt took the pressure off him as he walked away calmly and had an exceptional campaign,” says Murray.

“His toughness is the impressive thing. Not him exceptional Its one thing but it’s at 8/10 everything. That’s why he’s so hard to stop because he scores all kinds of goals – volley, header, 25-yard, all sorts of angles and ranges. Its qualities are very broad.

“And he has that mentality that he knows, even if he has a day off, it only takes him a second to score a goal and he’s the hero.

“We all know it’s going to be very annoying to get it, but once it gets there it won’t let go and relax; if you keep moving, that’s the next target. Also, he’ll break the record and he’ll want to solidify it absolutely as his own so he’ll never get caught. The strikers are greedy.” “.

In the end, it boils down to you as a person.

The human side was something Antonio Conte was keen to point out this week.

“He has great numbers,” says Conte. “We’re talking about a world-class striker who’s definitely going to break all records. I think he deserves it.

“I always want to emphasize also the human side in Harry because we are talking not only of a world class striker but of a really good man and person. For us, he is an important reference point. He is doing something incredible. At the same time, we try to help him and if he scores, he help us.”

It started against Shamrock Rovers. He could appropriately reach a result of some sort against Arsenal. But it won’t stop there.

Shearer adds, “Yeah, think about it; yeah, that’s on your mind. Yeah, you really need to do this so you can go out and score goals and be yourself again instead of ‘You’re one away from Jimmy Greaves.'” Then it’s An incredible feeling when you are ahead of Jimmy Greaves or Jackie Milburn.

“Yes, there is pressure. But it’s not bad pressure, is it?”

(Photo: Ben Stansall/AFP via Getty Images)