Is Harry Kane the best striker in the world currently?
England and Bayern Munich forward, Harry Kane in the UEFA Nations League match against Latvia. Photo Credit- BBC
When Harry Kane swapped Tottenham Hotspur’s white for Bayern Munich’s red in 2023 summer transfer window, the football world was greatly expectant, most likely to see him claim a trophy, which for long has been his missing piece. Could England’s record goalscorer, a man who had carried Spurs throughout years in thick and thin with passion and clinical finishing, finally finds the stage and the silverware to match his talent? At 30, Kane arrived in Allianz Arena as the Bundesliga’s most expensive signing ever (€110 million), bearing the weight of expectation and a reputation as one of football’s most prominent strikers.
Now, several months later, with the 2024-25 season nearing its twilight, the numbers tell a story of a player not just meeting those expectations but breaking them. Is Harry Kane the best striker in the world today? This piece is set to explore the evidence that proves so.
Harry Kane’s debut season statistics
To explore the opinions that proves Kane as the current best striker in the world, permit to start with his first season for the Bavarians. Kane’s first season at Bayern Munich in 2023/24 was nothing short of historic. He scored 36 goals in 32 Bundesliga matches, clinching the European Golden Shoe and the Bundesliga Canon (top scorer award) with a tally that outstripped every debutant in the league’s history. Add eight assists, and his direct goal involvements reached 44, an unrivaled figure in the competition that year. Beyond the Bundesliga, he netted eight times in the Champions League and once in the DFB-Pokal, finishing his first season with 44 goals and 12 assists across 45 appearances. His goals came at a blistering rate of one every 80 minutes in the Bundesliga, a record for any player with more than 25 strikes in their first 50 games.
It is not just the numbers but his variety that makes him stand out. A hat-trick in his first Klassiker against Borussia Dortmund (4-0) showcased his poacher’s instinct and composure, while a stunning kung-fu volley against Augsburg, later voted Germany’s 2024 Goal of the Year, just shows his technical brilliance. Bayern didn’t win the Bundesliga that year, with the invincible Bayer Leverkusen ending their 11-year reign, but Kane’s individual brilliance was undeniable. As a result both football enthusiasts, teammates and club executives have describe him as “phenomenal.”
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Harry Kane’s 2024-25 Season
Fast forward to at the time this piece was posted, and Kane’s second season at Bayern is proving he is no fluke or a one-season wonder. In 24 Bundesliga matches, he’s scored 21 goals and provided six assists, leading the league’s scoring charts despite Bayern’s midseason inconsistencies and poor form. In the Champions League, he’s been even more prolific, with 10 goals in eight games; including a four-goal haul against Dinamo Zagreb and a strike in the Round of 16 win over Bayer Leverkusen, making him the first Englishman to hit double digits in a single campaign. Across all competitions, Kane has 32 goals and 11 assists in 39 appearances, averaging a goal or assist every 78 minutes.
His penalty-taking remains a superpower: since joining Bayern, he’s converted all 20 spot-kicks he’s taken, including nine in the Bundesliga this season alone. That’s a 100% success rate in Germany, stretching his career penalty record to 88 scored out of 99 attempts (88.9%). Beyond penalties, his non-penalty expected goals (npxG) of 0.64 per 90 minutes ranks in the Bundesliga’s 98th percentile, proving his finishing is not one that comes by chance but as a result of years of diligence, consistency and talent.
Harry Kane is more than a goal machine
What sets Kane apart even more is not just his scoring but his completeness. At Bayern, he’s evolved into a playmaker as much as a finisher. His 23 assists in 82 appearances since 2023: 14 in the Bundesliga alone, shows his ability to come back for defense, link play, and create for others. Take his 2024/25 season: six assists in the Bundesliga, five in the Champions League, including a pinpoint pass for Leroy Sane’s goal against Leverkusen.
Kane’s work rate backs up the praise. He’s won 57% of his challenges this season, a higher rate than any other Bundesliga striker, and covers an average of 11.1 km per game, something every true football enthusiasts will say is pure No. 9. His 60.29% shooting accuracy (41 of 68 shots on target) and 3.24 shots per goal further illustrate his efficiency. For context, Bayern have won 30 of the 35 Bundesliga matches in which Kane has scored, including all 12 this season, a stat that speaks to his impact on a team chasing both domestic and European glory.
Harry Kane vs the World
So, is Kane the best across the globe currently? The competition and the argument is a tough one. Erling Haaland, Manchester City’s goalscoring machine continues to pile up numbers in the Premier League, with a goals-per-minute ratio that is difficult to match until this season. Kylian Mbappe, now at Real Madrid, combines pace, dribbling, and finishing, his hat-trick against Manchester City in the champions league playoffs proves his ability. Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski, Kane’s predecessor at Bayern, remains a dangerous threat when in the penalty box even at 36, while Inter’s Lautaro Martinez offers quite a complete package in Serie A and Galatasaray loanee, Victor Osimhen whose impressive display in the Turkish Super Lig still keeps his team at the top of the table and a chase for the Europa league trophy.
Regardless, Kane’s case is compelling. Haaland’s game is narrower, devastatingly effective but less involved in buildup (he has just eight assists in 68 Premier League games since 2022) and the struggle for form that has plagued the Cityzens, only proves that Haaland is still miles away from Kane. Mbappe’s versatility is unmatched, but his 2024/25 move to La Liga has been marred by inconsistency at the beginning of his debut season for the Los Blancos, unlike Kane whose Bundesliga dominance seems boundless. Lewandowski’s output has dipped slightly with age, and Martinez, while brilliant, doesn’t match Kane’s volume. Talking about Osimhen, the Nigerian striker can be compared to Kane in poaching instinct and physicality but Kane’s 76 goals and 23 assists in 92 Bayern games (1.22 goal involvements per match) outpace them all since August 2023, and his dual threat as scorer and playmaker gives him an edge.
Conclusion
At 31, Kane is in his prime, blending experience with a desire still available due to his years without a trophy at Spurs. His Bayern tenure with 100 goal involvements in 92 games, combines his statistical dominance with spectacular moments, like that Augsburg wonder goal or his Klassiker heroics. He’s not just scoring; he’s elevating a Bayern side that’s top of the Bundesliga and into the Champions League quarterfinals against Inter Milan.
Now, to set the matter straight: Is he the best striker in the world? The stats scream yes: no one combines his consistency, versatility, physicality, and output quite like this. Haaland might edge him in raw goals, Mbappe in speed, but Kane’s all-around game, as seen in goalscoring, assists making, leadership both on and off the pitch, makes him the complete package. As Bayern chase silverware and England eye the 2026 World Cup, Kane’s not just rewriting records; he’s making a claim as the striker with the standard that others should look up to.
