Spurs’ award-winning CF was ahead of Kane, and Poch sold him for £208k

When it comes to the modern icons of Tottenham Hotspur, they don’t get as grand as Harry Kane.

The England captain may not have won the trophy during his time in North London, but he had a major impact on the club.

For example, with the first team appearance of 435 people, the club legend has accumulated an astounding tally of 280 goals and 61 assists.

It is impossible to imagine the modern history of the Spurs without Kane, but before his breakthrough, the academy had another promising striker ahead of him.

Kane’s early Spurs career

As everyone knows, Kane’s football journey began in north London, but on the Redside, the Spurs’ bitter rivals were with Arsenal.

However, the Gunners released the future superstar when he was only 12 years old, and then academy manager Roy Massey later revealed that the club didn’t believe the youngsters had what they needed to make it in the game.

A few years after without a professional club, the teenager joined Lily White and made several loan moves across the country after spending some time in the youth system.

During his loan move, the Walthamstow-born ace made 13 appearances for the Under-21 between the 12/13 and 13/14 seasons, scoring nine goals and providing nine assists.

Finally, after going out on numerous loan spells, performing at the academy and making the appearance of strange first teams here and there, the British were given the first proper opportunity to establish themselves as the club’s ninth starting number nine in the 14/15 season, under the new boss Pockettino.

This was the opportunity he grabbed with both hands.

In 51 appearances, he scored 31 goals and provided five assists, with the rest being history.

But a few years before Kane finally made a mark on the team, he was before him with another up-and-coming striker.

Spurs striker before Kane

So, if we were to go back to the distant year of 2009, we might be talking about a certain Spurs young man who is turning his head at the club’s academy under the name Jonathan Obica.

At the end of the 2008/09 season, fans awarded the teenagers the club’s breakthrough award. Even though he was 18 at the time, he made his debut with the club in November 2008 in a UEFA Cup match against NEC Nijmegen.

Over the next six years or so, young people spend their time loaning with a variety of clubs, including Yeoviltown, Peterborough, Millwall, Swindontown, Brighton & Hove Albion, Charlton Athletic and Crystal Palace.

But there was also a spell he returned to play for Lily White U21, and he looked great in doing so.

For example, when Kane struggled to lend out Norwich and Leicester City in just 17 appearances in the 12/13 season – the Enfield-born poacher scored a tally of 18 goals and four assists.

Unfortunately, Pockettino hadn’t seen the future of the striker who was destined to reach the top when he was in charge in 2014 at one point.

He may not have reached the heights people thought he had as he was passing through the Academy in Tottenham, but 11 years after his sale, the 34-year-old carries an impressive career for himself.

After his time at Swindon, he played for Oxford United, St. Mirren, Morecombe and Motherwell before retiring last July.