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Tottenham Hotspur need more than Man City’s spare parts for Harry Kane

By Aaron Coe

LEICESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 23: Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur during the Premier League match between Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur at The King Power Stadium on May 23, 2021 in Leicester, England. A limited number of fans will be allowed into Premier League stadiums as Coronavirus restrictions begin to ease in the UK following the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images)
LEICESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 23: Harry Kane of Tottenham Hotspur during the Premier League match between Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur at The King Power Stadium on May 23, 2021 in Leicester, England. A limited number of fans will be allowed into Premier League stadiums as Coronavirus restrictions begin to ease in the UK following the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images) /
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PORTO, PORTUGAL – MAY 29: Gabriel Jesus of Manchester City looks on during the UEFA Champions League Final between Manchester City and Chelsea FC at Estadio do Dragao on May 29, 2021, in Porto, Portugal. (Photo by Carl Recine – Pool/Getty Images)
PORTO, PORTUGAL – MAY 29: Gabriel Jesus of Manchester City looks on during the UEFA Champions League Final between Manchester City and Chelsea FC at Estadio do Dragao on May 29, 2021, in Porto, Portugal. (Photo by Carl Recine – Pool/Getty Images) /

Jesus to back up Kane would be okay

We have to be honest, in a season when Sergio Aguero missed most of it with injury, Gabriel Jesus was still not the man for Manchester City. Jesus had 22 starts and made 29 appearances in the League and missed eight matches injured or ill. With just nine goals and four assists in his just over 2,000 minutes, Jesus averaged a goal contribution every 158 minutes. As a point of comparison, Gareth Bale was twice as effective.

Jesus is a willing runner and defender and could be a nice alternative to Harry Kane when you want a smaller more nimble target. However, at just 5’8″ he is not leading the line as your target forward. Further, Jesus has regressed as a player this year and simply has had little goal threat.

The nine goals are okay but Jesus took only 54 shots in the league and only had 16 shots on target – all season, 16. A 29.6% on target rate is not going to cut it at Spurs just as it is no longer cutting it at Manchester City. Yes, this was down from his career on-target rate of 45.6% but simply underscores a player who failed to capitalize on a golden opportunity with Aguero out most of the year.

Are we really to expect a player who failed to replace an aging Aguero under ideal conditions at City to replace an in his prime Harry Kane, with the pressure that comes with it. That is a recipe for disaster. As is the idea of Nathaniel Ake fixing the defense.

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