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Thomas Tuchel's red card in the closing stages of Bayern Munich's Champions League quarter-final second leg against Manchester City came as no surprise. He'd barely stopped ranting and raving for a second during the preceding 86 minutes at the Allianz Arena.
Tuchel's rage was directed at the referee but, in truth, his players were the real source of his frustration. Dayot Upamecano had proven an complete liability over the course of the two games, giving away a goal in Manchester and then a penalty in Bavaria as he failed dismally to cope with City's pressing, and Erling Haaland's combination of pace and power.
But what killed Tuchel was Bayern's inability to turn possession into goals, in both legs. They saw more of the ball not only at home but also in City's backyard, while they also had more shots than Pep Guardiola's side (31-24) overall, and as many on target (11 apiece) - and yet still lost 4-1 on aggregate. I try to not allow my players to focus on the result," Tuchel said after the 3-0 loss at the Etihad. "I think it is not a deserved result, it does not tell the story of this match. We played with personality, courage and a lot of quality but we didn't get the rewards we deserved. This does not feel like a 3-0 but it is a 3-0. So, it is a huge task to turn it around. And yet they actually could have done - had it not been for some dreadful finishing from the likes of Leroy Sane.
In that sense, Haaland had effectively proven the difference between the two sides. One side had a world-class centre-forward leading the line, while the other had a half-fit Eric-Maxim Choupo-Moting, who top-scored for Bayern last season with just 17 goals. So, while much of the fall-out from Bayern's elimination focused on the surprise decision to fire Julian Nagelsmann and hire Tuchel just before the quarter-finals of the Champions League, the real problem was replacing Robert Lewandowski with Sadio Mane. Obviously, nobody could have envisaged the latter proving more adept at hitting team-mates than the back of the net, but it was still a poor call by sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic.
Mane had earned himself a reputation as a world-class wide attacker and a reliable source of goals during his time at Liverpool - but was never as prolific as Mohamed Salah. There was never any chance of him filling the void left by Lewandowski, who had scored 50 times in just 46 appearances in his final season in Germany. Of course, that is the kind of insane strike-rate that very, very few centre-forwards could replicate at Bayern. But Harry Kane could. Genuinely. He is that good.
Lewandowski is obviously more of a pure goalscorer, a classic No.9 that truly comes alive in the area. Kane, though, is capable of both scoring and creating goals, which is why Real Madrid were also interested in signing him before Kylian Mbappe sent them yet another 'come-and-get-me' plea. There really is no better 'like-for-like' replacement for Karim Benzema than Kane. He's the closest thing to the Frenchman in the game today. Neither is especially quick but they are that rare breed of clever centre-forward who can do almost anything in the final third. They are simultaneously unselfish and single-minded, willing to work hard for their team-mates and drop deep to link the play, while at the same time intent on getting on the end of every single pass or cross into the area, making them a nightmare to mark.
It really is easy, then, to envisage Kane flourishing at Bayern, who have an abundance of young and gifted attacking midfielders and pacey wide men that would, in theory at least, work wonderfully well with such an experienced and mobile forward that would not only offer an excellent focal point in attack, but also be able to move away from central areas to create space for his colleagues to exploit. At this point, it seems certain that at least one - if not two - of Serge Gnabry, Sane and Mane will be sold this summer, particularly if Kane arrives for what is likely to be a significant fee. But the image of Kane being surrounded and supported by fantastic dribblers like Jamal Musiala and Kingsley Coman (if he manages to stay fit next season) is a mouth-watering prospect for Bayern fans right now. And rightly so.
Kane currently sits second on the list of the Premier League's all-time leading goalscorers. If he were to remain in England, even at Spurs, he would undoubtedly take the record away from Alan Shearer inside three seasons. After all, we're talking about a forward so clinical that he converted 12 percent more of his 'big chances' in last season's Premier League than Haaland (52.54%), and managed to score 30 goals in 38 appearances for the eighth-best team in England - meaning he finished just six shy of the Norwegian's record-breaking haul. That is a truly staggering achievement in the circumstances and one cannot help but wonder, if Kane can continue to score freely for a team in total disarray, just how many goals would he rack up for a Bayern side that will be all the better for a full pre-season under Tuchel?
There will, of course, be justifiable concerns about the fee, given Kane's age and past injury record. Because he is only a month away from turning 30, Lothar Matthaus, for example, believes that the England captain is "too old and too expensive for Bayern, who have always been reluctant to spend anything close to €100 million (£86m/$110m) on seasoned centre-forwards. And Kane is clearly not as physically formidable as someone like Lewandowski. However, he's played 49 games or more in each of the past three seasons for Spurs, while it's not as if pace has ever been a key part of his game. This is a player that relies on intelligence of movement and precision of finishing, so Kane could easily emulate his idol, Teddy Sheringham, by scoring goals at the highest level well into his 30s. And certainly in a side as strong as Bayern could be next season.
Certainly, if the Bavarians manage to also beat fellow Kane suitors Manchester United to Napoli centre-back Kim-Min-jae, their starting line-up would suddenly look like potential Champions League winners again, particularly if a quality defensive midfielder can be acquired to allow Joshua Kimmich to play further forward. Signing Kane is the key, though. We know that he favours remaining in England. We know that he wants that Premier League record. But, more than anything else, we know that he wants to win trophies - and a Bundesliga title would effectively be a formality for a side now going for 12 in a row. Tuchel and Bayern would obviously be aiming a lot higher than that, though. With Kane up top, they certainly wouldn't fear facing Haaland or City in next season's Champions League; on the contrary, they would relish it.
Source: goal.com
