Harry Kane: The Heavy Weight Of A Long Wait

Two hundred and thirteen Premier League goals, forty-six assists and zero titles. That’s what Harry Kane left Tottenham Hotspur with.

In an age where conversations around elite footballers border on titular acclaims, the England captain remained an exception for a long time.

A world class footballer by every individual metric in existence, his rise was steady, his growth consistent and his game rated among the very best.

What was missing in Kane’s career was triumph. Titles are the currency for success in football. At Tottenham Hotspur where Kane starred and shone, he won none.

A player of his level could walk into any team in the world but he chose to write a grand story at a club that had the workings of a grand establishment but the expectations of a small institution.

Tottenham came second in the Premier League in 2017 which is by far a great return for that club. They also played in the final of the Champions League in 2019 which was also a meteoric rise in fortunes for them relative to where they were ten to twenty years ago.

In both, Kane was at the centre, led from the front and was the flagbearer of the Tottenham banner. He could only wait for so long. Recurrent failures meant Tottenham had peaked just at second best and could only find their way down. The England striker waited to see if fate could spark new fortunes but it never came.

Then Bayern Munich to the rescue.

England and Germany may not see eye to eye but Kane represents a gem that can reorientate narratives. So much that even sworn enemies can sheathe their swords for a common bliss. Bayern went all in and got Kane while spending record money.

He delivered — but failed again. For the first time in twelve seasons, Bayern didn’t emerge Bundesliga champions. A rarity. A title that had become almost a birthright became one Bayern couldn’t lay their hands on. Kane, despite this disappointment had a brilliant first season and emerged top scorer in the league.

Kane’s inability to win a title became a topical issue. He is too special a footballer to be a butt of late night jokes but the social media knows no bounds. He became the subject of media trolls.

Between 2021 and 2024, he lost two Euro finals with England to further fuel his dismay. That must have been a difficult period that tested his resolve. He saw how sweet triumph must feel, but only from a distance. He watched others celebrate while he watched with longing.

What Kane never did was to stop performing. Every season, he grew and stamped his name. His game grew new arms and excellence became his only acceptable standard. Conversations about elite attackers were never complete without mentioning the Englishman.

At last, he won with Bayern Munich. The very first time he’d lift a title in his professional career. And it was a grand one. Bayern Munich’s one-year hiatus perhaps made it even more special. Finally, Kane won what is definitely the beginning of many more to come.

The wait is over, but at some point, the weight of that wait must have been heavy. It speaks to some of our stories as humans in all our endeavours.

While we feel that growth sometimes, we seek physical representations of progression, of success and we want it so bad. Voices are in our heads. People are in our faces. We want to feel seen, recognised, not just be known for the value of our essence but the physical rewards of it.

Kane is the England captain. He’s led them to two consecutive major finals, and a semifinal of the World Cup. He led a club like Tottenham to the Champions League final and to within touching distance of a league title. He has always been there. He made progress, but had to wait for that big day; that moment that truly underlines eminence.

And fittingly, Kane’s breakthrough came under the leadership of a man whose own story defied football convention. Great things lurk in unknown places.

Bayern Munich having a black manager, a man born to Congolese parents is huge in every fabric of its depth. Vincent Kompany led Burnley to relegation but brought the league title back to Bavaria. It’s a grand story of the funny opposites of life, spoken in football terms.

Kane must have hardly ever imagined it in his life — that his first career triumph would come under a player who was his opposition for many years. How that story has gone is humbling enough. To crucify happenstance is dangerous. Fate, not form, shaped his path. It is the deeper beauty of his story — that good things can be distant until they are attained.