Tottenham Hotspur star Harry Kane has told The Players’ Tribune that being released by Arsenal as an eight-year-old was “the best thing that ever happened to me” and he remains motivated by proving them wrong.
Kane, who became the first Spurs player to reach 100 Premier League goals in the 2-2 draw at Liverpool on Sunday, will be aiming to score against Arsenal for the seventh time when they visit Wembley on Saturday.
The England striker, 24, joined the Spurs academy after being released by Arsenal and said: “I remember the first time we [Spurs schoolboys] played against Arsenal.
“Even back then, I had a chip on my shoulder. It might sound ridiculous — I was only eight when they let me go — but every time we played them, I thought: ‘Alright, we’ll see who’s right and who’s wrong.’
“Looking back on it now, it was probably the best thing that ever happened to me because it gave me a drive that wasn’t there before.”
Kane scored both Spurs goals on his first senior start against Arsenal, a 2-1 win in November 2015.
He said: “When I was lacing my up boots I had a flashback to when I was 11, playing against Arsenal’s youth team.
“It was like deja vu. Before every match, I always visualise scenarios of exactly how I’ll score in the match. I’ve always been that way. I get really detailed about it — I’ll picture my opponents and the cut of the grass and everything.
“This time, I was picturing the defenders wearing the red Arsenal kit, and I got goosebumps.
“We were in the tunnel, and I thought: ‘OK. Took me 12 years. But we’ll see who was right and who was wrong.’
“I scored two that day, and the winner in the 86th minute was something that I’d never even dream of visualising before a match. It was a header — probably the best header I’ve ever scored — and that feeling when it hit the back of the net … I’ve never felt a rush like that in my whole career.
“I remember walking round the pitch after the final whistle and clapping to the fans … and it felt like: ‘Well — I told you so.'”
Kane added that it “wasn’t just about Arsenal,” saying: “It’s a little deeper than that. It was about proving something to myself, and to my family — who believed in me every step of the way.”
The striker said his “lowest moment” as a player was during a loan at Leicester in 2013, when he was struggling to get into the team, crediting a documentary about NFL player Tom Brady and his family with helping to turn around his career.
And he praised Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino, adding: “One of my fondest memories in football is when I scored a hat trick a few seasons ago and Mauricio called me into his office after the match.
“At the time, I’d say we were close, but not super close. I wasn’t sure what he wanted. So I open the door and he’s sitting there at his desk with a glass of red wine. Big smile on his face. And he waves me in and says: ‘Come on, let’s get a picture.’
“So he’s got his arm around me, with his glass of wine in the other hand, and we’re taking a photo. It was brilliant. That was the first time I thought: ‘Wow, this is a special person.’
“He’s a fantastic, fantastic man. I respect him as a manager and as a boss, of course — but he’s really my friend outside of football, as well. He’s the reason why our squad has become so close — we’re genuine mates, and I think that’s rare in football nowadays.”
