By Samuel A. February 22, 2024
Veteran England striker, Harry Kane, joined Bayern Munich on a mega deal from Tottenham Hotspur last summer. The striker’s aim coming into a super Bayern team was to “win big titles” as “this club is defined by its winning mentality” according to him in his first interview upon his arrival, however, things have not really clicked for Bayern Munich since then, as they lost the Super Cup to Leipzig, got eliminated from the DFB-Pokal by a third-tier opposition, surprisingly lost to Lazio in the UEFA Champions League, and are now eight points adrift of Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, which used to be their surest trophy for the previous 11 seasons prior to this.
Kane was culpable against Bochum in Bayern’s latest defeat as they were handed their third defeat in a row for the first time since 2015. He initially squandered a glorious opportunity to double the lead for the club sometime in the first half and then failed to salvage a draw with a header in stoppage time.
Going into the Bochum game, Bayern’s points per game total had been higher than their previous three seasons, but title rivals Leverkusen have just been relentless, losing ZERO games at this point of the season.
Bayern are still the top scorers in the Bundesliga, obviously so, because of Kane. He has scored 25 goals in his 22 appearances and can hardly be accused of squandering the chances. With five assists, he has helped to bring the best out of teammate Leroy Sane too.
The English international’s 25 goals have come from an expected goals (×G) total of 19.8, that he has scored about five more goals than he should have scored based on the quality of the opportunities. His finishing ability reliably adds around 25% more goals to his total. That is what Bayern paid for and he has delivered it.
The defence has looked vulnerable, particularly against Leverkusen on the counter, even though many of the problems come from the midfield. The manager was public about his desire for a holding midfielder in the summer, which never arrived.
Some part of the dressing room saw it as undermining Joshua Kimmich.
Kimmich’s partnership with Leon Goretzka is long established, but players change. Against Bochum, Kimmich was outmuscled for their first goal, proving that Tuchel could’ve been right about his quest for a new holding midfielder.
Kane’s performances throughout his career have deserved more, but somehow, the man who appears to have a winning mentality, who joined a team with that winning mentality, is still discovering new ways not to win. Having already lost European finals with Tottenham Hotspur and the Three Lions, as well as finishing runner up in the Premier League, the striker’s wait to be a winner continues.
