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Cape Town - England boss Gareth Southgate has hailed Harry Kane's attitude and skill, while comparing him with Alan Shearer despite the youngster's lack of success on the international stage.
Kane, who has shown phenomenal form in his first three seasons as Tottenham's first-choice striker, is yet to make his mark for the Three Lions, but this has not stopped Southgate from heaping praise on the young striker.
The former England international, who took over managerial duties following the sacking of Sam Allardyce, acknowledges that, while Kane has shown that he is a top class performer in the Premier League, recognition on the international stage is necessary if he is top be regarded as one of the world's best.
“For all top players, there will always be the next challenge,” he told reporters.
“With Cristiano Ronaldo you could see what it meant to him to be a European Champion with Portugal when he was running the team from the touchline in the Euro 2016 Final.
“Over the last 30 years, no player has had a bigger impact on the game than Lionel Messi. Yet people still say the missing piece is success with Argentina.
“So for every player there is always: ‘What’s the next challenge? What do I have to prove next?’.
“It’s important that our players recognise that there’s always another level to push towards.
“The great thing about Harry is that he wants to know more about everything – his nutrition, his athletic training or whatever it is.
“He has shown he was not a one-season wonder. He has put the numbers on the table.
“He is so focused all the time on how he can get better.”
On the topic of the 23-year old's similarity to England legend and Premier League all-time leading goalscorer, Alan Shearer, Southgate said: "Both are very single-minded, with the hunger to be top of those scoring charts a huge driving factor for them.
“One of the resemblances I see is that if you have won the game and they haven’t scored, both have had the hump!
“Alan always got the bigger picture of what is important for the team and Harry sees that as well.
“So they’ll enjoy the individual recognition. But for the real satisfaction, they want to win things with the team as well.
“Shearer had aggression and Harry does, too. It’s partly down to him maturing physically and partly to him being psychologically more confident.
“With that you take on a bigger presence when you’re on the pitch.
“I think there is something about hunger within that presence as well. Harry is a hungry player.
“He’s always going to make sure nothing gets in his way of doing what he wants on the field," Shearer's former international team-mate added.
