Thomas Tuchel has admitted his Bayern Munich side “didn’t create enough” for Harry Kane as his debut ended in defeat.
Kane came off the bench in the DFB Supercup – Germany’s equivalent of the Community Shield – less than 24 hours after his record-breaking move was made official. Bayern were trailing to RB Leipzig when the new signing came onto the field, and ended up losing 3-0 courtesy of a Dani Olmo hat-trick.
Bayern clinched the Bundesliga title on the final day of the 2022-23 season. Moreover, the arrival of Kane is designed to make Tuchel’s team more clinical in front of goal this term. After a disappointing start, though, the manager explained what his team needs to do differently.
“We don’t expect him to be the superhero,” Tuchel told reporters after the game. “We just expect him to be who he is. A top guy, a top goalscorer and a top personality”.
“I feel sorry for him. We did not create. We did not keep the momentum going. We did not create enough for him. He will help us a lot. We need exactly his attitude. To help us step out of the circle of repetitive performances like this.”
Questions were asked about Kane’s involvement so soon after joining. The move was only made official on Saturday morning, and the 30-year-old will expect to have more of an impact once given the opportunity to train regularly with his new teammates.
“Harry went to bed at three or four o’clock, after his medical,” Tuchel confirmed. “We need to learn from him. He does not need to learn from us. He will help us a lot to escape the cycle or poor performances we have been having.”
Bayern had a tough time of things last season, prompting the Bavarian side to ditch manager Julian Nagelsmann and bring in former Chelsea boss Tuchel. A late-season defeat to Leipzig looked to have dented their chances of the Bundesliga title, but rivals Borussia Dortmund were beaten on the final day to bring another dramatic turnaround.
Kane could be in line for a Bundesliga debut on Friday, when Bayern travel to Werder Bremen. His first game at the Allianz Arena, meanwhile, is expected to arrive against Augsburg on August 27.
“Obviously a lot of emotions going through me right now; sad to be leaving the club I’ve spent nearly 20 years of my life at, from an 11-year-old boy to a 30-year-old man now,” the striker said after leaving boyhood club Tottenham.” “There’s been so many great moments and special memories, memories that I will cherish forever. I felt like it was the time to leave. I didn’t want to go into the season with a lot of unresolved future talk.”