Dominic Solanke has insisted he feels no pressure to take take up Harry Kane’s mantle at Tottenham and revealed the chat he had with the England skipper following his £65million transfer from Bournemouth.
Solanke appears to have found his footing in north London and will arrive at Old Trafford to face Manchester United on Sunday on the back of two goals in as many games.
The 27-year-old is no stranger to the spotlight that comes with playing or a big club, having started his career at Chelsea before completing a switch to Liverpool.
And ahead of Tottenham much-anticipated Premier League clash, he revealed that he’s also unfazed by the prospect of replacing Kane – the club’s all-time leading scorer, who left for Bayern Munich last year.
‘Harry is who he is. I don’t think anyone would want to see him replaced anyway.’ He told The Mirror. ‘He’s a world-class striker. But I’m here now and I want to score as many goals as I can for Tottenham and hopefully we can win some trophies.’
Dominic Solanke is settling into life at Tottenham following his £65million transfer this summer
The 27-year-old scored his second goal in as many games as Spurs defeat Qarabag in the Europa League on Thursday
Harry Kane has taken the Bundesliga by storm since joining Bayern Munich and he’s looking to end a trophy drought of his own this season
Tottenham’s wait for a trophy will reach its 17 years at the end of the season. It’s a drought that has seen the club lose several world class players, including Kane.
The England captain returned to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with Bayern during pre-season and Solanke shed light on the private talk he had with the Spurs hero.
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‘Harry came into the changing room and I spoke to him – we had a few words and he obviously only had good things to say about the club.’ Solanke continued.
‘It was probably just what you expect. But he spoke so highly about Spurs, how good the players and staff are here.’
All things considered, Spurs have adjusted well to life without Kane.
Last season they finished just two points off the top four in Ange Postecoglou’s first year at the club. Solanke, meanwhile, was scoring 21 league goals for the Cherries.
His form prompted Spurs to swoop for a big-money deal, which those connected to the club hope will finally enable them to clinch some silverware.
Ange Postecoglou (left) takes his side to Old Trafford to face Erik ten Hag’s Manchester United on Sunday
At the very least, Spurs are desperate to be back in the Champions League and victory over a rival like United will go a long way to achieving that aim.
Solanke added: ‘Everyone knows how big of a club United is so it’s going to be a tough game. But we are not scared of anyone so we will go there and be on the front foot and hopefully we can get another result.’