Former England star Gary Lineker has explained why Harry Kane is not a 'perfect striker' like Manchester City terminator Erling Haaland.
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Lineker hails Haaland as 'perfect striker'Discussed an element of Kane's game that is differentHaaland has already scored four goals this seasonGetty ImagesWHAT HAPPENED?
The Manchester City goal machine is off to a flying start in the new season as he has managed to score four times already in the first two matches of the Premier League including a hat-trick against Ipswich Town on Saturday. Kane also found the back of the net in Bayern Munich's season opener against ULM in a DFP Pokal clash and provided two assists in the club's 3-2 win over Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga on Sunday.
AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE
While both Kane and Haaland are widely considered to be the two best centre-forwards in the world at the moment, former England international Lineker feels that the Three Lions captain is not a 'perfect striker' in comparison to the City star due to his tendency to drop deep in search of the ball.
WHAT GARY LINEKER SAID
During a discussion on The Rest is Football podcast, Lineker said: "I thought it highlighted as well the importance of the way Haaland plays and plays so high. Because if he constantly spins behind, defenders will get nervous so they drop a little bit deeper. Therefore, your midfield players will have more space behind. Whereas if he did drop 20 yards into midfield, then he actually crowds it out more so there’s no space for those midfield players. So it’s very important."
He added: "I think we did talk about this in the summer with England because Kane likes to drop. But if he can stay higher, then you can create a little bit of space in behind. I think he does that brilliantly and he’s that perfect striker where he’s patient enough. He doesn’t care if he touches it ten times or 50 times in the game. He cares about how much he touches it into the back of the net."
Getty/GOALWHAT NEXT?
The Norwegian will be next seen in action on Saturday as Pep Guardiola's side take on West Ham in a Premier League clash. A day later, Kane will take to the field for Bayern against Freiburg in the Bundesliga.