Harry Kane has been 'let down' at Bayern Munich: England striker doesn't deserve any blame for German giants' nightmare 2023-24 season - which was summed up by Thomas Tuchel's baffling substitution call vs Real Madrid

Bayern will look back on their Champions League tie against Madrd with a real sense of regret - and bitterness. Alphonso Davies' 68th-minute thunderbolt in the second leg at Santiago Bernabeu put them 3-2 up on aggregate; it was a goal worthy of winning any game, a once-in a lifetime strike from a player who had never previously scored in Europe's top competition. But it wouldn't have happened without Kane.

The England captain dropped deep to help Bayern launch a counter, and picked out Davies on the left flank with a quite brilliant lofted pass that landed perfectly in the Canadian's stride. Kane's main job is to put the ball in the back of the net, but he's also an elite playmaker, which is why Thomas Tuchel's decision to take him off with five minutes of normal time left was so confusing.

The Bayern boss had already brought Kim Min-jae and Thomas Muller on for Leroy Sane and Jamal Musiala, respectively, inviting plenty of groans from the away section, and then introduced Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting for Kane with the contest still very much in the balance. And by the 91st minute, Madrid had completed a remarkable comeback courtesy of a poacher's brace from former Stoke City forward Joselu.

There was huge controversy right at the death, as Matthijs de Ligt saw an equaliser ruled out for a very harsh offside, but Tuchel was the real villain, not the officials. Bayern were in control before he started ringing the changes, and he invited pressure by switching to a back three before making the unforgivable decision to remove their target man, the one who provided the most threat and exuded a much-needed sense of calm with his hold-up play.

Tuchel claimed that Kane was unable to continue because his back had "frozen up", which didn't really hold up as an excuse. The 30-year-old didn't look to be in any visible pain and was still making an important contribution.

"That’s one of the biggest subs I’ve ever seen in a game of football of that magnitude,” former Bayern and Manchester United midfielder Owen Hargreaves said in the TNT Sports studio post-match. “To take off a guy that’s scored 44 goals, who is the most durable player pretty much anywhere and you bring on another striker in Choupo-Moting. Maybe he wanted height for corners, I don’t know. You cannot take him off. There’s five minutes left in the game, there’s [potentially] 10 minutes of extra-time, 15 minutes. Bayern had it in their hands and they let it go."

Bayern probably would have been looking forward to an all-German final against arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund had Tuchel not taken such drastic steps to park the bus. It was another cruel twist of fate for Kane, but Tuchel's muddled side wouldn't have even got this far without him, as he finished his Champions League campaign with 12 goal involvements from as many matches.

"He has done his job. He has scored the goals," Hargreaves' former Manchester United team-mate Rio Ferdinand added to TNT Sports. "They brought him to continue winning trophies and I feel the others have let him down more than anything. I think he will have a heavy heart tonight."

As inconsistent as Bayern have been this term, they were arguably worse in 2022-23, certainly after Tuchel was drafted in to replace Julian Nagelsmann. Bayern only made it to the Champions League quarter-finals, where they were battered by eventual winners Manchester City 4-1 on aggregate, and retained their Bundesliga crown after a shocking Dortmund collapse on the final day of the season.

Choupo-Moting and Serge Gnabry led Bayern's scoring charts with 17 each, which highlighted the main issue with the team. Kane has solved that with his prolific output in the final third, effectively filling the void left by Robert Lewandowski after his 2022 departure to Barcelona.

Kane could even still equal Lewandowski's record for the most goals in a single Bundesliga season (41), albeit he is still five goals behind with only two games left to play. Lewandowski set that mark in 2020-21, when Bayern were a far more well-rounded team and he had an endless supply of quality service, but Kane has managed to get close to the same figure while feeding off scraps.

It's not just a one-off either, because he did exactly the same in a Tottenham shirt for the best part of a decade. Kane's strength of character is unmatched, and even as he edges towards the twilight years of his career, he keeps pushing himself to get better, despite still being part of a squad full of players that don't hold themselves to the same high standards.

"It’s just a gift, honestly, to be his coach," Tuchel said when quizzed on Kane's impact at Bayern in March. "I feel very privileged. He’s super humble. He’s the first out there on the pitch every single day. Whatever you ask of him, he will do it. He is that huge personality that is so humble and then becomes a a shark – a shark on the field, because he is up for goals, he’s up for winning. He does it on an everyday basis. He does not only score on a daily basis. He trains well. He does what is needed. He shows his quality, makes everyone better by his pure presence. It’s the highest level. You can just put it like this as a human being, but also as a football highest level."

Kane was unfairly mocked from day one at Bayern, as he came on as a second-half substitute in the German Super Cup final with RB Leipzig already holding a commanding 3-0 lead. The fact he didn't break his silverware duck on his debut had nothing to do with his own performance, though - it was just pure bad luck.

His arrival at Allianz Arena also happened to coincide with Bayer Leverkusen's rapid rise under Xabi Alonso. The Spaniard inherited a Leverkusen team sitting second-bottom in the Bundesliga in October 2022, and led them to a sixth-place finish, providing the platform for a quite remarkable second act.

Leverkusen would go on to clinch their first-ever Bundesliga title after thrashing Werder Bremen 5-0 on April 14, and with five games to spare. Alonso's men could end up completing a remarkable treble with the Europa League and DFB-Pokal also still up for grabs, and they are one game away from breaking the record for the longest-ever unbeaten run in European football.

Should they avoid defeat in their final two Bundesliga games, Leverkusen will become the competition's first-ever 'Invincibles', and even in their very best seasons, Bayern would have had a hard time staying on their coattails. As it currently stands, Bayern are 15 points adrift in second, and the title race has been pretty much over since their 3-0 hammering at BayArena in February.

It's fair to say that Kane underperformed against Leverkusen, touching the ball just 18 times, but he was left isolated up top because of Tuchel's cautious tactical approach. It was a similar story when Bayern suffered a 2-0 home defeat to Dortmund a few weeks later, though he was also guilty of missing two great chances in that contest.

Bayern's most humiliating defeat of the campaign actually came in the DFB-Pokal, though, as they were knocked out in the second round by third-tier Saarbrucken. Kane was an unused substitute in that tie, and things might have been different had he been on the pitch.

Bad performances from Bayern have been quite frequent, but not from Kane; he's only failed to register a goal contribution in 13 of his 45 appearances for the club to date, which underlines just how consistent he has been. It will come as scant consolation, but Kane should clear up at the club's end of season awards, and he will head into Euro 2024 with his reputation as the most deadly marksmen in the game firmly intact.

Incredibly, Kane has also had to deal with constant speculation over his future at Bayern, with it suggested that he could return to the Premier League in the summer amid reported interest from former club Tottenham and Manchester United. He has been quick to rubbish such a notion, albeit while admitting that his first season in Germany hasn't gone quite as well as he'd hoped.

"My future is at Bayern Munich," Kane said last month. "I have a four-year contract, I'm enjoying it. Of course, it's not the season I wanted with the way the league has gone and the way we got knocked out of the cup. We have to find that togetherness and team ethic where we grind out games because we haven't done it enough this year. Of course, from the club's point of view, it will be a failed season if we don't win anything this year because we're expected to win, but all we can do is take that into next year and try and turn that around."

There is every chance that Bayern will be able to do exactly that in 2024-25, not least because Tuchel will no longer be in the dugout. They need a fresh start, and whoever replaces the German will have a world-class squad to mould in their own image, one quite capable of wrestling the title back from Leverkusen.

Bayern have the resources to create another domestic dynasty and fight for the Champions League again, and Kane will be at the centre of that project. If the rest of the squad can match his work-ethic next season, it won't be long before he finally starts adding to his trophy cabinet, and what has happened over the past 11 months will end up being dismissed as a blip.

Alonso's decision to stay on at Leverkusen means Bayern won't have everything their own way again, but the champions will almost certainly lose a few key players, and it remains to be seen how they will cope with the rigours of Champions League football. It would make absolutely no sense for Kane to go back to England, or for Bayern to give up on him because they've endured their first trophy-less season in 12 years.

Kane has done everything within his power to help bring more success to the club, and will continue to do so; he's their most important player now. He deserves so much more for his efforts so far, but this is just the beginning.

The harsh truth is, Kane has paid the price for his loyalty to Tottenham. He was affiliated with the club for a grand total of 15 years, nine of which he spent in the first team, and had plenty of opportunities to leave when he was in his prime.

Bayern and Real Madrid were both credited with interest in Kane throughout his time at Spurs, while Manchester City made a serious play for his services in 2021, but he resisted the urge to jump ship. One single cup triumph probably would have justified those impressive levels of devotion, as it would have meant more to Kane than winning numerous trophies at a club where expectations are far higher.

But now he's seen as a jinx, and a lack of tangible success has led to his mentality being questioned. There may be a part of Kane that regrets signing a new six-year contract at Spurs back in 2018, despite the fact that allowed him to go on and become the club's all-time record goalscorer.

He has been the ultimate 'nearly man' up to this point and it would be a huge shame if that were to be his lasting legacy when he eventually hangs up his boots. That is very unlikely to be the case, though.

Kane had the courage to step out from his comfort zone and try to change his story in a new country last year, embracing a new language and culture in the process. He's now fully settled in Germany, where the 2024 European Championship will be held, and that can only be a positive thing as he bids to lead England to glory.

Should he be successful, the 'Spursy' monkey will be off his back for good. But even if England fall short, Kane still has plenty of time to fill the honours section on his CV. Bayern will be back with a vengeance next season and Kane will get the appreciation he is long overdue.