Harry Kane might only be 24 but already he is reaching a moment that will come to define his career.
It may well arrive next summer but certainly within the next two years if he continues performing with such deadly consistency.
It is whether he will follow the vast majority of leading players in seeking out both the best remuneration and chance of silverware or whether he will also factor in the potentially more lasting and deeper reward of staying loyal to one single club.
Another two goals on Saturday further underlined his status among Europe’s best strikers and the question also cropped up 24 hours earlier during a question and answer session with journalism students at the Southampton Solent University.
Matthew Le Tissier and Francis Benali were also on the panel and one notable observation was how similar one-club legends are in danger of becoming relics.
Kane scores his second goal of the game for Tottenham against West Ham on Saturday
Everyone in the room seemed to regard modern football as the poorer for it and just about everyone also nodded when another panellist expressed hope that Kane continues to deliver the absolute peak years of his career in a Tottenham shirt.
It was a struggle, though, to then think of comparable examples in the modern Premier League. John Terry, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville and Frank Lampard certainly came into the debate but the most meaningful one-club legends are surely those who knowingly pass up greater riches or the likelihood of more success elsewhere.
Le Tissier did just that although is honest about how his decisions were sometimes as much practical as purely romantic.
The closest recent comparison for Kane is surely Steven Gerrard. Manchester United, Real Madrid and Chelsea all wanted him and, however much this might pain Liverpool fans to read, the blunt truth was that he effectively sacrificed medals to remain loyal to his boyhood club.
This is not to condemn the decision - it can be argued that his relationship with Liverpool represents something far more meaningful - but simply to point out the consequences.
Matt Le Tissier is one of the Premier League's great 'one-club men'
Le Tissier also genuinely has no regrets and you need spend only a few minutes with him in Southampton to understand the depth of the local reverence. He believes firmly that careers are measured in memories and moments as well as medals.
Which brings us back to Kane. Tottenham will surely try to convince their striker that he can have it both ways. That he can fulfil his on-field dreams and be paid a handsome wage at the same time as building fan and community relationships that will endure for generations.
The reality is of course likely to be more complicated. Kane’s form currently puts him in very elite company within the main European leagues. Lionel Messi has the best ratio with 34 goals in 26 league matches but next – and before players like Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Edinson Cavani and Romelu Lukaku - are both Kane and Robert Lewandowski on 25 league goals in 23 games.
Kane’s age, record and physical strength in the lone striker’s positions has made an enormous offer from one of Europe’s aristocracy almost inevitable in the coming years. Then it will largely be over to Kane.
History tells us that most players do get restless but the prize that might accompany staying should not be easily overlooked.
St Mary’s on Saturday afternoon were on the stadium entrance at which Manchester United’s team bus was waiting. Whoops of excitement greeted the emergence of just about every player but the image that will linger longest in the memory was the sight of a man who will next month reach the landmark of his 80th birthday.
As Sir Bobby Charlton quietly made his way into a waiting car, it felt strange to have this very modern scene of camera phones clicking away in excitement at even the most modest player being briefly interrupted by a figure of such iconic significance. Phil Jones had emerged at about the same time and, as Charlton departed relatively unnoticed, it felt tempting to give some of those younger fans a brief history lesson.
Sir Bobby Charlton is still able to attend just about every United game CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES
Charlton’s landmark birthday will no doubt prompt fresh appraisal of his life and contribution to British football but the salient facts are simple enough. The only other player from these isles to have won both the World Cup and European Cup is Nobby Stiles, his former Manchester United team-mate. Stiles is now very ill in a nursing home amid a 16-year battle with dementia from which football largely looks away.
Charlton happily remains able to still attend just about every Manchester United game in person, yet the collective frailty among the heroes of 1966 was sadly very evident last year on their 50th anniversary. A similar picture will emerge next year when we reach the same milestone for United’s 1968 European triumph. Charlton stands among the elite giants of British sport of any era and his ongoing presence at stadiums across the country should be savoured.
It may well arrive next summer but certainly within the next two years if he continues performing with such deadly consistency.
It is whether he will follow the vast majority of leading players in seeking out both the best remuneration and chance of silverware or whether he will also factor in the potentially more lasting and deeper reward of staying loyal to one single club.
Another two goals on Saturday further underlined his status among Europe’s best strikers and the question also cropped up 24 hours earlier during a question and answer session with journalism students at the Southampton Solent University.
Matthew Le Tissier and Francis Benali were also on the panel and one notable observation was how similar one-club legends are in danger of becoming relics.
Kane scores his second goal of the game for Tottenham against West Ham on Saturday
Everyone in the room seemed to regard modern football as the poorer for it and just about everyone also nodded when another panellist expressed hope that Kane continues to deliver the absolute peak years of his career in a Tottenham shirt.
It was a struggle, though, to then think of comparable examples in the modern Premier League. John Terry, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville and Frank Lampard certainly came into the debate but the most meaningful one-club legends are surely those who knowingly pass up greater riches or the likelihood of more success elsewhere.
Le Tissier did just that although is honest about how his decisions were sometimes as much practical as purely romantic.
The closest recent comparison for Kane is surely Steven Gerrard. Manchester United, Real Madrid and Chelsea all wanted him and, however much this might pain Liverpool fans to read, the blunt truth was that he effectively sacrificed medals to remain loyal to his boyhood club.
This is not to condemn the decision - it can be argued that his relationship with Liverpool represents something far more meaningful - but simply to point out the consequences.
Matt Le Tissier is one of the Premier League's great 'one-club men'
Le Tissier also genuinely has no regrets and you need spend only a few minutes with him in Southampton to understand the depth of the local reverence. He believes firmly that careers are measured in memories and moments as well as medals.
Which brings us back to Kane. Tottenham will surely try to convince their striker that he can have it both ways. That he can fulfil his on-field dreams and be paid a handsome wage at the same time as building fan and community relationships that will endure for generations.
The reality is of course likely to be more complicated. Kane’s form currently puts him in very elite company within the main European leagues. Lionel Messi has the best ratio with 34 goals in 26 league matches but next – and before players like Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Edinson Cavani and Romelu Lukaku - are both Kane and Robert Lewandowski on 25 league goals in 23 games.
Kane’s age, record and physical strength in the lone striker’s positions has made an enormous offer from one of Europe’s aristocracy almost inevitable in the coming years. Then it will largely be over to Kane.
History tells us that most players do get restless but the prize that might accompany staying should not be easily overlooked.
St Mary’s on Saturday afternoon were on the stadium entrance at which Manchester United’s team bus was waiting. Whoops of excitement greeted the emergence of just about every player but the image that will linger longest in the memory was the sight of a man who will next month reach the landmark of his 80th birthday.
As Sir Bobby Charlton quietly made his way into a waiting car, it felt strange to have this very modern scene of camera phones clicking away in excitement at even the most modest player being briefly interrupted by a figure of such iconic significance. Phil Jones had emerged at about the same time and, as Charlton departed relatively unnoticed, it felt tempting to give some of those younger fans a brief history lesson.
Sir Bobby Charlton is still able to attend just about every United game CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES
Charlton’s landmark birthday will no doubt prompt fresh appraisal of his life and contribution to British football but the salient facts are simple enough. The only other player from these isles to have won both the World Cup and European Cup is Nobby Stiles, his former Manchester United team-mate. Stiles is now very ill in a nursing home amid a 16-year battle with dementia from which football largely looks away.
Charlton happily remains able to still attend just about every Manchester United game in person, yet the collective frailty among the heroes of 1966 was sadly very evident last year on their 50th anniversary. A similar picture will emerge next year when we reach the same milestone for United’s 1968 European triumph. Charlton stands among the elite giants of British sport of any era and his ongoing presence at stadiums across the country should be savoured.
