Harry Kane blames Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi's dominance for lack of top players in key position
England captain Harry Kane has blamed Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi for the lack of top strikers. The legendary players dominated world football for nearly two decades, winning a combined 13 Ballon d'Or awards, and Kane believes this dominance has had a bad effect.
At the height of his career, Ronaldo won five Ballon d'Or awards, alongside another five Champions League trophies with Manchester United and Real Madrid. Lionel Messi has won the Champions League four times with Barcelona, while clinching the Ballon d'Or an unprecedented eight times.
Ronaldo has now scored over 900 career goals, while Messi has hit the 850 mark, and they have both broken numerous records that may be impossible to reach. Harry Kane believes that their legendary status has led to an emergence of numerous wingers, rather than all-out strikers.
Speaking with TNT Sports Brazil, the Bayern Munich striker said (via GOAL):
"The game is changing a little bit. The way coaching is now [means] a lot of players grow up wanting to be wingers. I think Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo dominated for a long, long time playing off the wings. I think a lot of players wanted to watch them.
"When I was growing up, I had some of the best strikers in the world [to watch], so I wanted to be a No. 9. That’s just the way football goes. I think, tactically, some managers play with a false nine, or a nine-and-a-half/10 position."
He continued:
"It’s a shame because, ultimately, I think scoring goals is the hardest thing in football, so I would like to see more No. 9s coming through, but over the years you’ll see it come and go. But for sure, when I was growing up at No. 9 there were some incredible players."
Indeed, aside from perhaps Erling Haaland and Viktor Gyokeres, some of the most exciting players in Europe are wingers like Vinicius Jr and Lamine Yamal.
Cristiano Ronaldo passes Lionel Messi in goalscoring record run
Cristiano Ronaldo has become the first player in history to score a minimum of 40 goals across 13 years. According to AS, this has crossed Lionel Messi's previous record of the same minimum, but across 12 years.
Messi notably struggled to get the goals flowing after he left Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain. In Paris, where he spent two seasons, the legendary Argentine playmaker scored just 32 goals, but created 35 assists in 75 appearances.
He has joined up with Inter Miami, where goals have flowed better, with 34 goals coming in his 39 games for the club. He will be hoping that he can enjoy a successful season next year, and potentially hit the 40-goal mark in the MLS.
Cristiano Ronaldo has broken the 40-goal mark in a calendar year while at Al-Nassr, and he will hope he can continue in a similar vein moving forward.
