- Ronaldo & Messi flourishing till late in their careers
- Kane believes he can do the same
- Striker also revealed England retirement plans
WHAT HAPPENED? The England international made a major career decision in the summer when he decided to set sail for Germany and join Bayern Munich from Tottenham, to reignite hopes of winning silverware after a barren spell in north London. He is already on the other side of 30, but Kane believes that he has the potential to play at the highest level for at least "eight or nine" more years, following in the footsteps of Messi and Ronaldo.
WHAT THEY SAID: "The perception in sport or football in general is you hit 30 and people start to think it is the end,” Kane told reporters. “But the way I am looking at it is that I almost have the second half of my career. I played in the first team at Spurs from 20 or 21 so I have had nine or 10 years at the highest level and I am hoping for another eight or nine years at the highest level again. When you look at a lot of the top-level players - Ronaldo, Messi, [Robert] Lewandowski, [Zlatan] Ibrahimovic — they have almost got better as they hit 30. In a lot of sports that happens as well. Everything is maybe settled in your personal life. You have got family, you have got kids — so that side is all settled.
"You are comfortable with your body, you are comfortable mentally where you are at and that just allows you to focus on the football. I just want to keep playing. I think, with everything, with recovery, sports science and the way the game has been and adapted, it has allowed players to play for longer. I would like to think my career will go to my late thirties — at least."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: England will be co-hosting the 2028 European Championship and Kane could feature for the Three Lions in the continental tournament on home soil as the striker revealed that he has no plans to quit international football and will fight for his place until he is not "picked anymore" by Gareth Southgate.
"I have always been so proud to play for England and I am proud to play every minute that I think the thought of retiring would be pretty hard to even think about," he said.
“I am someone who will always want to keep pushing and to keep testing the limits. I will probably keep going until I am not picked anymore and then accept that and take it on the chin."
IN TWO PHOTOS:
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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT? Kane will be hoping to add to his international goal tally when he takes the pitch against Australia in a friendly on Friday evening before England go up against Italy in a Euro 2024 qualifier on October 17 at Wembley Stadium.
