Tottenham Hotspur lost arguably their greatest-ever player last summer when Harry Kane departed for Bayern Munich, but Ben Davies insists the squad spent no time worrying about that and got on with the task at hand without the striker.
After coming through the club’s academy and becoming the all-time top goalscorer for Spurs, the loss of Harry Kane rocked the club, at least from the outside.
Kane moved on to Bayern Munich and has just had an incredible season from an individual perspective, scoring 44 goals in 45 games for the German giants (Transfermarkt).
Tottenham didn’t sign a replacement for Kane last summer, instead relying on Heung-min Son and Richarlison to provide goals. And provide they did, with 27 goals between them this term.
Harry Kane transfer wasn’t a big deal for Spurs squad
Looking back on the mood within the Spurs camp at the time of Kane’s transfer, Ben Davies reveals the way the squad reacted and explains why it wasn’t treated as a big deal within the club.
He told the Business of Sport podcast: “I think it’s probably more built up in the media than it was in our dressing room… people in football move on and it happens. We’re very used to it.
“So as incredible as a player Harry is and such a huge loss for any team in world football that he would be, the day that he wasn’t there was just another training day where we knew okay, well, this is our team. This is what we’ve got for the season.
“So the football wheel keeps turning and you have to do your best to deal with it on a weekly basis in matches without him. And I think we actually started the season this year incredibly well without him. It really galvanised us.”
When asked how the responsibility within the squad shifted, Davies added: “I think a lot of people had to step up. What were we going to do? Expect a season where we all just moped around saying we wish we had Harry Kane? It’s just not going to fly. So the reality is we had to knuckle down, and share that responsibility to try and get better.
“Look, of course, it would be nice to have Harry in your team. I think everybody in the world of football would say that, but you’re dealt the hand you’re given and you have to do your best.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Losing Harry Kane was obviously going to have an impact, but the way the squad has stepped up in his absence is admirable, and we even scored more goals than when he was here. Now, can you imagine what might have happened if we had signed a striker last summer to replace him?
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