Which Harry Kane will show up for Tottenham in the Final?

Having Harry Kane available for the final is marvellous news for Tottenham, but one has to question which version of the club’s venerated leader will show up on June 1.

Two things are certain about Harry Kane in respect to the Champions League final: nothing will keep him from playing, and leave absolutely everything on the pitch.

What’s entirely uncertain, however, is how Kane will perform after almost two months on the sideline.

Injuring his ankle on April 9, Kane has been a spectator since the fateful moment on the byline at the Etihad. The discernible, anguished wince and his inability to put any weight on the ankle conveyed the news nobody wanted to accept.

Most people thought the injury was season ending, such was the severity and compounding effect of a previous ailment to the same ankle months before. You’d be in the slim minority if you thought he’d play again in 2018-19.

Thanks to heroic efforts by his comrades, particularly Lucas Moura – whose miracle hat trick guaranteed Spurs’ place in the final – Son Heung-Min – whose three goals against Manchester City defied all quarterfinal odds – and Fernando Llorente – whose goal at the Etihad was the difference between their ousting and a semifinal berth – Kane gets another kick at the proverbial can.

Many pundits, during Kane’s long absence, posed the asinine question of whether Spurs are a better team without their marquee man. Moura, Llorente and Son performed admirably while Kane recovered, but there is no disputing the fact that Tottenham are a superior team when Kane plays.

His presence alone is worth its weight in gold.

If Tottenham supporters are honest with themselves, they’ll admit apprehensiveness – along, of course, with excitement – about the prospect of their top marksman suiting up in the biggest match in club history.

But is it possible for Kane to dominate the world’s best defence after about 50 days without any meaningful action?

All footballers know the distinct, palpable difference between being healthy and being match ready. Kane should be the former, though nobody – other than Spurs’ medical staff and those in his inner circle – truly know whether his ankle has fully healed.

Let’s be optimistic and assume it has.

Kane still has the unenviable task of trying to match the pace of a Champions League final devoid of any preparatory combat. Coming back from recurring ligament damage is hard enough without having to face a baptism of fire of incomparable momentousness.

To make a Kane-like difference, the 25-year-old must be sharp with every cut, turn, sprint, touch. He cannot afford to be off the pace, as Virgil van Dijk and company have this season silenced all comers. Barcelona was an exception to the rule, as Lionel Messi and company split Liverpool open for three. But we all know what happened in the reverse affair.

If any player in world football can overcome the odds, it’s Kane. He’s shown improbable resilience before, and, according to teammates, galvanized his side with an inspiring halftime sermon in Amsterdam during the semifinal second leg.

If Kane is able to motivate his side to an unlikely three-goal comeback without even suiting up, surely, even if slightly off the pace, he’ll be able have a greater inspirational effect with an on-field presence few can replicate.

In a match of such fine margins, it might take only one deft, precise touch to lift Spurs to the ultimate prize.

I don’t know about you, but I’ll take my chances every day of the week on an out-of-practice Kane conjuring up a single magical moment, no matter how highly touted the opposing defence.