Harry Kane Reveals How Tom Brady Inspired His Career After Hitting 100-Goal Milestone
Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane has revealed how NFL's New England Patriots' quarterback Tom Brady inspired him to become the free-scoring talisman he is today.
After being released by Arsenal at a young age and enduring spells at local clubs followed by Watford's youth academy, the England international was picked up by Spurs' scouts.
However, after graduating through the north Londoners' ranks, first-team football was hard to come by, with the 24-year-old sent out on loan to Leyton Orient, Millwall and Norwich City, all before a troubling time with Leicester City.
Despite coming from a Premier League club, Kane was unable to secure regular game time with the then-Championship Foxes, a spell which took its toll on the frontman's confidence.
"The lowest moment was probably when I was at Leicester City, and I just couldn’t seem to get into the team", the Englishman, who secured his 100th Premier League goal on Sunday, wrote in The Players' Tribune.
"That was the first time in my career, I’d say, that the doubt crept in. It’s a tough thing, doubt.
I was so down that I told my dad I wanted to leave."
However, following words of wisdom from his father, Kane found an unlikely inspiration in quarterback Brady, who, through nothing but hard work and dedication, much like the Spurs man, has gone on to become one of the greatest to ever take the field in the NFL.
"A few weeks later, I was sitting in my flat again — and at the time I was really getting into the NFL", he added.
"If I wasn’t training, then I was playing Madden or watching New England Patriots videos on YouTube. So one day, I happened to stumble on this documentary on Tom Brady. And it’s all about the six quarterbacks who were taken before him in the NFL draft.
"Turns out, Tom Brady was the 199th pick in his draft class. Imagine that. It just blew my mind — but in a good way. The film really struck a chord with me. Everyone was doubting Tom his whole life. Even when he got to college the coaches were trying to replace him with another quarterback.
"They showed this picture of him being weighed by the scouts before the NFL draft, and he’s got his shirt off … and it’s so funny, because he’s just looking like a regular guy, you know? And this one coach says, 'We’re looking at this Brady kid, and he’s tall and gangly, and he looks like he’s never even seen a weight room.'
"He reminded me of me. People were always making the same assumptions about me. “Well, you know, he doesn’t look like a proper striker.”
"It was genuinely inspiring to me. Brady believed in himself so much — and he just kept working and working, almost obsessively, in order to get better. It really connected with me.
"This might sound strange, but it really was like this light flicked on inside my head that day, right there on my sofa in Leicester — and all of a sudden, I said, 'You know what? I’m going to do it. I’m going to work as hard as possible, and my chance is going to come, and I’m going to grab it.'"
