Harry Kane: 'Messi sets the standard'

Harry Kane: 'Messi sets the standard'

Spurs and England striker and manager Mauricio Pochettino speak to the press the day before facing FC Barcelona and there's one man they fear more than any other: Lionel Messi

Harry Kane delivers goals aplenty not only for Tottenham Hotspur but also for England, finishing as top scorer at the recent World Cup.

But the 25-year-old knows he still has a long way to go before he could be mentioned in the same breath as the man he is meeting on the pitch tomorrow.

Leo Messi has definitely set the standard for the rest of us” he told the press on Tuesday. “It motivates me to get even better and improve and hopefully one day score as many, if not more, than he has.”

“It’s a great test for us. As players you want to play against best in world and Messi is certainly that, a fantastic player, and we will do our best to stop him.”

“We’ve got to prove we can beat the best teams in the world and we need to do that against Barcelona.”

Pochettino: Don't give Messi space

His manager, Maurcio Pochettino, also lavished praise on his fellow Argentinian, of whom he has first hand knowledge from his days as manager as Espanyol.

"It's about enjoying the game tomorrow and the best player in the world in Messi," he said. "It's very clear, very simple, we need to be near him when he gets the ball."

"If we leave him space he will get away from his marker. What we need is to have players helping each other. We need to demand sacrifice and they will expend a lot of energy."

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