The Tottenham boss believes his striker's fine goalscoring record this season is all the more impressive because he is now receiving the attention of a "top-class player"Mauricio Pochettino says Premier League defenders look at Harry Kane the same way he viewed world-class strikers like Ronaldo and Romario as a centre-back for Espanyol and Argentina.
The Tottenham boss believes Kane was underestimated as a young player last season, when he scored 21 Premier League goals and was named the PFA Young Player of the Year.
Now, though, Pochettino thinks the 22-year-old is established as a forward requiring extra attention - making his fine goalscoring record this season all the more impressive.
"When I was playing against Ronaldo and Romario my challenge was to fight with them and I had to be ready 200 per cent, not 100 per cent," he explained.
"It's like when Harry Kane started, the opponents would say, 'He is young'. Now he is a top-class player.
"It is always a challenge for centre-backs to try to stop him, it's a big challenge. It has changed how they see us, how they look at us."
Tottenham are winless in 2016 and suffered a 1-0 defeat at home to Leicester City in midweek but Pochettino will stick with his young players in the chase for a Champions League place.
"I can show you a lot of 30-year-old players who make a lot of mistakes and younger ones who maybe make one or two," he added.
"There is always the temptation to blame the youngsters and criticise them but sometimes that is not right. The younger ones make the same mistakes that the senior players do."
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