According to former Newcastle and Blackburn striker Alan Shearer, Harry Kane’s recent ankle injury could be a blessing in disguise for Tottenham Hotspur and the England national team. Although Spurs will miss the services of the 24-year-old for at least a month, Shearer feels that it is good news for the club in the long run.
Kane has been ruled out of action for around a month after damaging his ankle ligaments in a collision with Bournemouth goalkeeper Asmir Begovic last week. He picked up a similar ankle injury last season but recovered relatively quickly but this time, the striker could be sidelined until mid-April.
In Kane’s absence, Son Heung-min has stepped up to lead the attack for Spurs. Shearer, whose Premier League record Kane is hunting down, has written in his blog for Coral that the injury to the mercurial striker could actually benefit Spurs and England, giving Son a chance to prove his worth as a centre-forward.
“Son will now have the opportunity to be the leading man in the team and they will be looking for him to continue producing the goals,” Shearer was quoted by Coral.
“He has been superb this season and one of their best players. If he keeps up his scoring record, they should be OK without Kane for a few weeks. From an England point of view, it could end up being a good thing.
Shearer explained to Coral that heading into Euro 96 he had to undergo a hernia operation at a similar point in the season.
“Heading into Euro 96 I had a hernia operation at a similar point of the year and it gave me a little bit of a rest. I know you are working hard behind the scenes but you are not travelling, playing the games or getting kicked,” Shearer added.
“I then went on to finish as the top goalscorer at the tournament. The general feeling is that the top players are playing too much football so at least he is going to have a break. He has had the same injury before so he will know how to handle it and so will the medical team.”
Kane has played a lot of football for club and country in the last couple of years. He has had very few injury problems which are part and parcel in the life of a footballer. But whenever he has gone out injured, he has returned with a bang and I agree with Shearer’s thoughts on the ankle injury providing Kane with some much-needed rest.
So let’s just hope that Kane makes a speedy recovery and gets back to training in mid-April. We have entered the business end of the Premier League and to finish on a high, Spurs would definitely need their talismanic striker fully fit and running.
