Harry Kane has responded with calm assurance to criticism from Michael Owen, who recently downplayed the significance of the striker’s move to Bayern Munich. Owen had suggested that winning titles in Germany lacked meaning compared with triumphs in England, sparking debate about Kane’s career choices.
Speaking this week, the England captain acknowledged Owen’s stature in the game but made clear that his own priorities differ. “I heard it. Everyone is entitled to their opinion,” Kane said. “Obviously he is a Premier League great and an England great as well, so I’ll respect him as a person. But ultimately, as he will know, everyone’s career is different—everyone’s decisions and motivations are different.”
Kane, who left Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2023 after becoming the club’s all-time leading scorer, insisted that his move to Munich was never solely about adding a league medal. Instead, he described it as a deliberate step toward testing himself on football’s grandest stages.
“I know he was insinuating I went just for the trophy, but it was to be at the highest level for as long as possible,” Kane explained. “I’m really happy in that sense—playing big games, title runs, big Champions League matches, a Club World Cup quarter-final. I feel I’m improving as a player, I’m pushing my limits as a player in terms of goalscoring and just improving.”
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Kane’s time in Germany has already underlined his point. He has continued to score prolifically while competing regularly in Europe’s elite competitions—something that Tottenham struggled to provide consistently. The forward suggested that the move has enriched him beyond silverware, broadening his experience and sharpening his game against a new backdrop.
“It’s hard not to hear things these days,” he admitted of the outside noise, “but the decisions are best for me, and I’m really happy that I made that decision and very happy at Bayern Munich now.”
For Kane, whose career has been defined by extraordinary consistency but also by questions of legacy, the Bayern chapter is both personal and professional. It is about proving to himself—perhaps more than to others—that ambition can take many forms, even if it means leaving England’s spotlight for new horizons.
