Harry Kane to Sky Sports: "A lot of people talk about the trophies and why I came here, but ultimately it was to improve, to feel a new pressure of having to win titles every year." | Watch Werder Bremen vs Bayern Munich live on Sky Sports Football from 7.20pm on Friday; kick-off 7.30pm.
Thursday 17 August 2023 06:08, UK
Harry Kane insists he moved to Bayern Munich to experience the pressure of having to win silverware ahead of his side's Bundesliga opener at Werder Bremen, live on Sky Sports on Friday.
The England captain completed his £100m move and made his debut on Saturday, coming off the bench in his side's 3-0 German Super Cup defeat to RB Leipzig.
Kane, speaking exclusively to Sky Sports News, is now preparing for the start of the Bundesliga season with the German champions travelling to the Weser Stadium and the 30-year-old is eager to make a fast start to his career in Germany, with the expectation on Bayern to retain the title high.
When asked if he's ready to hit the ground running against Werder Bremen, live on Sky Sports Football on Friday, he said: "I think so. I had a good pre-season, a lot of training and a lot of games, and now this week, I've naturally gone into the team environment and settled in really well.
"I'm excited to get the season started.
"Any first game of a league season is exciting because you are ready to go and eager to show what you can do.
"It's going to be a tough game like every game will be away from home, but I'm excited to try and show Bayern Munich and show the fans what I've been doing my whole career and win the game."
Much has been made of the fact Kane is yet to win a major trophy in his professional career but at Bayern expectation will be high for the club to bring home silverware at the end of the season.
And Kane is eager to feel that pressure following his move from Tottenham.
He told Sky Sports News: "A lot of people talk about the trophies and why I came here, but ultimately it was to improve, to feel a new pressure of having to win titles every year, having to go far in the Champions League and pushing myself to that limit.
"If you are winning games, if you are winning titles, if you are winning Champions League titles and I'm the one playing up front, it's more likely that I am going to be the one scoring goals, which then allows you to win other individual awards.
"But that all comes from what you achieve as a team. That is my focus first and foremost and that starts this Friday.
"We've got a long season ahead. There's a lot of pressure for Bayern Munich to win the league and go far in the Champions League, and that is what I am excited to challenge myself with.
"When you are at a club like Bayern Munich you have to win. There are no questions about it," he added.
"If you don't win or you don't perform well there is going to be question marks over you. I have been able to handle that over my career, whether it is with Tottenham or with England.
"Starting the new season, you always want to start well with a good result. An away game first will be tough but if we can win that we can set up a good bit of confidence for the rest of the month."
Kane is fully focused on helping Bayern have a successful season and if he can help his new side achieve that, and potentially help England win next summer's European Champions, individual honours like the Ballon d'Or could follow.
When asked about individual honours, he said: "If you are winning your league and winning the Champions League, and obviously we have the European Championships next summer as well, and as we've seen with the Ballon d'Or you have to be winning team trophies to achieve that.
"If I'm scoring goals and we are winning trophies then of course that will come into question, but it is not really what my focus is on right now."
And when Kane looks back on his career what would constitute success, honours for club and country?
He said: "It's hard to put a number on how many trophies you want to win but I have always said throughout my whole career I never want to retire and feel like I could have done more or I could have pushed myself a little bit more.
"That was a big part of the decision-making process of coming to Bayern Munich because to improve and to get better I had to be playing at the highest level.
"Of course, I want to win every competition I play in. That is the ultimate goal every season but when you finish your career, whenever that may be, you just want to make sure you've pushed yourself to your limits and that is what I'll continue to do."
Watch Harry Kane's Bundesliga debut on Sky Sports! Werder Bremen vs Bayern Munich live on Sky Sports Football from 7.20pm on Friday; kick-off 7.30pm.
When Harry Kane finally left Tottenham, 4369 days had passed since his debut, every one of them without a trophy. The expectation was that he would break that cycle on day one at Bayern Munich. Instead, schadenfreude visited the new signing.
Dani Olmo's hat-trick stunned the expectant Bayern supporters inside the Allianz Arena as RB Leipzig won the Supercup - and there was nothing that Kane could do to prevent it. Two down when he came on. Three down before he had touched the ball.
When Bayern had talked of making him feel at home, this is not what Kane would have had in mind. He chased around but with little reward. Thomas Tuchel even apologised to his new signing afterwards for his team-mates' inability to find him with their passes.
Kane is accustomed to carrying the weight of a club's expectations, of course. But at Spurs he was one of their own - loved long before those expectations were placed on his shoulders. At 30, there are one hundred million reasons why he must deliver here.
Read more from Adam Bate in conversation with Mario Gomez and Phillip Lahm Here
Harry Kane is set to make his first start for Bayern Munich when the German champions start the defence of their Bundesliga title away at Werder Bremen on Friday night - and you can watch the game live on Sky Sports Action from 7.20pm on August 18 - kick-off 7.30pm.
Bayern then face a home fixture against Augsburg, live on Sky Sports Football on August 27, kick-off 4.30pm. Stream the Bundesliga and more on Sky Sports with NOW for £26 a month for 12 months.
