Harry Kane is on the brink of breaking a Bundesliga scoring record that was expected to remain unbroken for decades. Yet, for Bayern Munich, it might not hold much significance in their current campaign.
Kane boasts an impressive tally of 30 goals in 25 German league matches for Bayern, including a recent hat-trick, with an upcoming match against bottom-placed Darmstadt providing him with the opportunity to add more to his tally.
If Kane manages to score another 12 goals in Bayern’s remaining nine games, he will surpass the record of 41 goals set by former Bayern striker Robert Lewandowski in 2021, breaking a record that stood for nearly fifty years, previously held by Gerd Müller.
While Kane’s achievements in his debut Bundesliga season are remarkable, Bayern finds themselves trailing by 10 points behind the unbeaten league leaders, Bayer Leverkusen.
“Realistically, they’re favorites to win the league. All we can do is do what we’ve done today, just win our games,” said Kane after his hat-trick in Bayern’s 8-1 victory over Mainz, acknowledging Leverkusen’s impressive form.
“They’ve had a fantastic season, credit to them for that, but this is always the business end, this is always the hardest part. All we can do is try to win our games, and hopefully, they drop points.”
For Kane, achieving the individual scoring record without securing a league title would resonate with his career narrative. Despite winning three English Premier League top scorer awards and a World Cup golden boot, he has yet to clinch a major team trophy, falling short in the Champions League and European Championship finals.
Bayern’s loss in the German Super Cup, Kane’s first match for the club, further highlighted his misfortune.
With coach Thomas Tuchel’s departure looming, Bayern’s best chance at silverware this season might lie in the Champions League after advancing to the quarterfinals with a win over Lazio.
Their opponent, Darmstadt, hasn’t recovered from the 8-0 thrashing by Bayern in October, a game in which Kane scored a hat-trick. Sitting at the bottom of the league, Darmstadt hasn’t won a match since, suffering a heavy 6-0 defeat to Augsburg recently.
Meanwhile, Leverkusen remains focused on their pursuit of their first-ever Bundesliga title, needing six wins from their last nine games. Stuttgart, in third place, is quietly aiming for Champions League qualification, a remarkable turnaround from narrowly avoiding relegation last season.
Coach Sebastian Hoeness, amidst speculation linking him with Bayern, seeks to lead Stuttgart to victory against his former club Hoffenheim, inching them closer to a Champions League return after over a decade.
