‘I know you’re going left’
Kane reveals Bellingham pre-penalty mind games
BAYERN MUNICH striker Harry Kane revealed England teammate and Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham tried to upset his penalty routine before taking a crucial spot-kick in yesterday’s 2-2 Champions League semifinal draw.
With England captain Kane standing over the penalty spot, Bellingham walked up to him and whispered in his ear.
Kane scored the penalty, sending goalkeeper Andriy Lunin the wrong way, to give Bayern a 2-1 lead, with a late spot-kick from Vinicius Junior levelling the scores.
“In the moment I didn’t know what he said. I spoke to him afterwards and he said he told me ‘I know you’re going to go left.’ He was trying to tell the ‘keeper.
“On the pitch I didn’t know (what he said). I knew he was there, but I just kind of didn’t know what he said.
“He was mumbling something, once I’m in that moment… I’m in my zone trying to block everything out.”
Kane, who did send the ball left, said he saw the ‘keeper go a bit early and I was able to put it away. “Obviously the penalty was nice for me.”
The 30-year-old, who is still yet to claim a piece of team silverware despite a glittering individual career, said the team was primed for next week.
“It’s amazing. We’ll play Real Madrid in the semifinal of the Champions League. This is the experience I came here for and to have this opportunity is something I am really excited about.
“It’s 0-0. There’s one game to take you to Wembley. We’ve got a great opportunity here.”
Bayern captain Manuel Neuer told reporters: “It’s good. We still have everything in our hands.
“We would have liked to have won. Looking at the run of the match, we deserved to leave the field as winners.
“We will concentrate on the return game. The winner will go to the final. Quite a few teams would like to trade places with us.”
Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel, who eliminated Real Madrid in the semifinals on his way to winning the tournament as Chelsea coach in 2021, said of next week’s match: “The winner takes it all.”
“The result is the result. Real Madrid has done this before, scoring two goals from two chances in each half. We are not the first team to whom this has happened.
“It is still a 50-50 match. The Bernabeu is one of the most difficult places to win, yes. But I think we will be able to create chances.”
For Bayern midfielder Jamal Musiala, a draw was “a little bit of a bitter feeling”, having played so well.
“Real Madrid have the quality to create something from situations where you think they won’t create anything,” he said. “We’ll keep our heads high and go again at the Bernabeu.” – AFP/Agencies