Alan Hutton has discussed the worrying influence that Harry Kane has at Tottenham, which sees them struggle to perform when he isn’t playing.
The England captain has been Tottenham’s main goalscorer and has proven to be a reliable one.
He has added assists to his game this season. Nowadays, he is either scoring or making a goal when he plays.
But when he has been rested or missed games through injury, Spurs hardly achieve anything.
Son Heung-min is the club’s other goal threat, but when Kane is absent, the South Korean becomes ineffective.
Hutton says there is a shift in the mindset of the Tottenham players when Kane isn’t playing, and he has a similar influence as Jack Grealish has at Aston Villa.
He says with Kane on the pitch, the Tottenham players are confident that they can get results, but in his absence, they become mentally weak.
Asked if he thought the mindset around the Spurs dressing room changed with and without Kane, Hutton told Football Insider assistant editor Russell Edge: “It could be, yes.
“I mean, even myself, I have been in that situation with the likes of Villa when Jack Grealish was injured for such a long time and he wasn’t playing, he’s that person that can be the difference-maker from winning a game and losing a game.
“When you’ve not got that guy on the pitch, yes, of course, you feel the pressure a little bit more. I think the way Tottenham have been playing, very defensively, they always had that outlet of Kane getting on the ball and making something happen.
“When they don’t have that, they just look lost. They need him playing to function, really. From the outside looking in, if he’s not playing they literally look all over the place.”