England captain Harry Kane says he is “taken for granted” and feels people have become “bored” of his goalscoring record.
The 31-year-old is the Three Lions’ all-time top scorer and will look to add to his tally of 69 in Friday’s opening World Cup qualifier against Albania at Wembley (19:45 GMT) in new boss Thomas Tuchel’s first game.
However, despite his impressive goal return for England, Kane has still attracted criticism in the German media for his performances for Bayern Munich, where he has scored 76 times in 82 appearances.
“It’s like when [Cristiano] Ronaldo and [Lionel] Messi were throwing these crazy numbers out there and the next season they’d score 40 goals instead of 50. It was like they were having a bad season,” Kane said.
“People take it for granted and maybe a little bit with England as well. I’ve scored 69 goals and when you score against Albania or Latvia, or these teams, people just expect it so it’s not spoken about so much.
“If I was 25 now and doing what I’m doing, the excitement around me would maybe be a little bit different to what it is now. That’s part of where we are with football. I’ve seen it with some other players as they get into their 30s.
“Maybe people just get a little bit bored of what you do, but I’m certainly not bored. I’m excited for these games and the games ahead.”
Kane has registered 21 goals in 24 Bundesliga appearances this term to help Bayern open up a six-point advantage at the top of the table.
They also have a Champions League quarter-final to look forward to against Inter Milan. Yet the former Tottenham striker’s impact has been questioned at times in Germany.
“It’s hard. Sometimes it motivates me. Sometimes, to be honest I try to stay away from it as much as I can,” Kane added.
“Probably, when I was young I listened to more than what I do now. Ultimately, I criticise myself more than anyone could do on the outside but… always use it as fuel to prove people wrong.
“In today’s game, I feel like there’s such a difference between a high and a low. You go from not scoring for a couple of games, to people saying he’s not sharp enough… to scoring and you’re a Ballon d’Or contender and it’s like, the difference is too high and too low.
“I know what I’ve done in my career and I feel like I have a lot of respect from a lot of football people out there and I’ve achieved a lot in my career.”
Michael Owen was the last English player to win the Ballon d’Or in 2001.
But Kane believes his transfer to Bayern in 2023 has provided him with the platform to earn the coveted prize awarded to the world’s best player each year.
“Just being at a club like Bayern Munich has helped push me on even more, confidence-wise and responsibility-wise,” he added.
“I feel like I’ve definitely got better, I’ve improved, and maybe the ‘aura’ of me as a player is a bit more respected than what it has been in the past, because you’re playing in big games, big nights.
“I felt that last season as well, I scored over 40 goals, but obviously, I was never going to win the Ballon d’Or because we didn’t win the team trophies.
“Those opportunities are there. That’s probably what I mean in terms of being respected more worldwide, on the bigger stage.
“For something like that, you have to win enough team trophies to be considered in that and probably score 40-odd goals, but that is a possibility this season.
“That is definitely something I would love to try to achieve.”
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