It was getting close to midnight when Harry Kane came out to receive the congratulations of the media while patiently waiting for a word with Bayern Munich’s new Ballon d’Or winner. He hadn’t even played in their 6-1 cup win over Magdeburg, but it still felt like his night.
He joked about his children playing with the trophy. He responded to calls for him to be knighted: “I would feel strange if everyone called me Sir.” Strangely, he even faced questions about being given a golden schnitzel: “I saw it more as a trophy than eating it.”
Kane insists he was ready to play, but it’s clear that what he refers to himself as “a huge emotional burden” has taken its toll on him. “It feels like the Freiburg game was six weeks ago,” he said. Actually, it was Sunday. So much has happened in the last 48 hours.”
Of course, much of the focus has been on him becoming just the fifth Englishman to claim the award and the first in a quarter of a century. But Bayern have waited two decades longer than that to see one of their own pick up this award. They adore Kane.
Even on a night when he was warming the bench only to find his team didn’t need him – memo to Cristiano Ronaldo on that one – it was a special occasion. As he began to go through his routines at the start of the second half, the call of ‘Harry’ went up.
There was already a guard of honor on his return to the Allianz Arena. Such is Kane’s character, he wasn’t entirely comfortable: “Even when I was coming out to warm up and they’re all there clapping, I don’t know, I’m so embarrassed.”
Harry Kane greets the fans as he is given a guard of honor against Magdeburg
But he has to get used to it. There are more tributes planned for Kane’s return to action against Borussia Dortmund in Der Klassiker on Saturday and the announcement of a new Bayern contract is imminent. This movement in Germany has been a triumph.
Not everyone thought so at first. Former Bayern president Uli Hoeness suggested he too thought a nine-figure sum was crazy. Since then he has said that he would have bought it for 150 million euros. That sums up how Kane has exceeded expectations.
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Gary Neville hails Harry Kane’s professionalism and work ethic after winning Ballon d’Or
Speaking to Bayern legend Lothar Matthaus about how perceptions have changed, he explains: “It was a high figure, but it was the best investment Bayern Munich was probably ever making. Nobody knew what you were going to get out of that £100 million.”
Matthaus adds: “No one, I think, thought of this three and a half years ago. It was the idea, maybe the dream, maybe the desire. But to win the Ballon d’Or considering his age? I repeat, it was the best investment that Bayern Munich has made in the last 20 years.”
Everyone is fascinated by his humility: “Harry Kane is a fantastic player, not only on the pitch. He is a fantastic person. The way he presents himself in front of the media, when he is with the fans, he gives every fan an autograph, he spends time with them.”
But above all is the fact that he is a better player than they thought they were buying. Having crossed the line into the title race in 2023 thanks to Dortmund’s last-day blunder, Bayern knew they needed a striker to replace Robert Lewandowski.
What they actually signed was much more.
“He comes from number 10, sometimes moves to left-back, then goes into defence, takes the ball, gives assists, opens the game. This is not a typical number 9, the one we used to know, who has to be in the box. Harry Kane is a playmaker. That’s what makes him so special.”
Saturday, October 31 at 5:20 p.m
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Matthaus continues: “Bayern Munich changed the system and this system is very good for Harry because he does not have to stand and cut the ball in the box. Harry Kane can do what he wants because he is a footballer. He knows what he has to do.”
As Matthaus points out, this is not so much an act of sacrifice as a means of expression. “He’s everywhere and he’s doing it because he likes to do it.” Indeed, Matthaus himself, a midfielder and 1990 Ballon d’Or winner, even sees echoes of his own play in Kane.
“Franz Beckenbauer, he didn’t tell me anything I had to do, because he believed that I would do at this moment what was best for me and for the team.” It’s a similar situation with Kane. “He’s somebody who’s connected to the team. He’s this leader,” Matthaus adds.
Harry Kane’s touching map for Bayern Munich highlights his all-round game
“Being a leader as a striker is sometimes very difficult because you’re thinking, I’ve got to score. Harry Kane doesn’t just think he’s got to score. He’s got to organize the team, he’s got to provide assists, he’s got to work for the defence. That’s what makes him so special.”
It helps that the team fills it out, with willing runners and a coach who appreciates positional rotations. A perfect marriage. “That’s what makes it so beautiful, the story with Harry Kane.” But the story is not over yet. “It gets better, too, like red wine,” says Matthaus.
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Rob Dorsett analyzes whether Harry Kane can now be called England’s greatest ever player
There are things left to achieve, and not just that rider who was asked about until late Wednesday night. Bayern wants to win the Champions League. With England, Kane is still chasing that major international trophy that has so far eluded him.
But seeing the love for him in Munich was a reminder that he has become more than a product of England now. “Harry Kane is the face of the Bundesliga,” says Matthaus. “He changed Bayern Munich a bit. Harry Kane, I think he finds his peace in Munich.”
He also found the Ballon d’Or. And speaking to Kane on Wednesday, it was his final words as he reflected on what he called “a whirlwind 48 hours” that took him to London and back that perhaps felt the most important of all. “It’s good to be here and feel at home again.”
