English stars leading the way for Europe's giants - Kane & Bellingham face off in UCL showdown

In the 2010 World Cup, where England were eventually embarrassed and eliminated by Germany in the round of 16, the Three Lions squad was entirely made up of players who played their football in the Premier League. All 23 players plied their trade in England. For many years the top English players rarely left English shores. Take examples like John Terry, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Paul Scholes, who all spent the prime of their careers playing in the country they were born. But that’s now changing.

Arguably England's two best players right now in Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham are both playing abroad for European giants and thriving. Kane cannot stop scoring for Bayern Munich in his first season in Germany, and 20-year-old Bellingham has shocked everyone with his immediate impact at Real Madrid, scoring 16 LaLiga goals for ‘Los Blancos’, including two injury-time winners in El Clasico matches against Barcelona this season. The pair will go head-to-head this Tuesday in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final at the Allianz Arena. Whichever side makes it through from Bayern v Real Madrid will be favourites to lift the trophy in Wembley in June. No team has been to more Champions League semi-finals than these two European juggernauts since the re-format in 1992 - Real Madrid 17 times and Bayern 13 times.

Harry Kane’s record breaking first season at Bayern Munich

It hasn’t gone to plan for Bayern in the Bundesliga. For the first time in 11 seasons they are not champions, with Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen taking the division by storm to win their first ever title. However, on a personal note Kane has been prolific. The England international departed Tottenham last summer in search of his first ever trophy at Bayern and his contribution this season has been huge. The England striker has recorded an incredible 55 goal contributions in all competitions and his brace against Frankfurt last weekend broke an impressive record.

Kane’s double took him to 35 Bundesliga goals this season - meaning he’s just six off Robert Lewandowski’s league record 41 with three games remaining. The 30 year old has also provided ten league assists, equating to 45 goal contributions in the Bundesliga. That represents a record for the most goal involvements for players in their debut seasons after moving clubs in the top five leagues this century. Kane moved ahead of Erling Haaland - the Norwegian registered 44 goal involvements last season as Manchester City won the treble.

Kane also has seven goals and three assists in the Champions League this season, including a penalty at the Emirates against Arsenal in the quarter-final. Only Kylian Mbappé has more in the competition this season. That already equals Kane’s highest scoring season in the Champions League, with the England captain also scoring seven goals in seven games in Tottenham’s 2018/19 campaign. Although this season is only the second time that Kane has made it to the semi-final stage of Europe's top club tournament. He will be hoping to add to his tally against Bellingham’s Real Madrid.

Jude Bellingham’s sensational start to life at Real Madrid

Bellingham has been a true revelation since moving to Real Madrid from Borussia Dortmund last summer for €103 million. Many felt it may be a purchase that would bear its biggest fruits in the years to come, given the Englishmen’s age. But he has hit the ground running. The midfielder has 21 league goal contributions in LaLiga, with Real Madrid all but confirmed as the division champions. Remarkably, only Girona striker Artem Dovbyk (19) has more league goals than the former Birmingham City man this season (17). In the December LaLiga market value update, Bellingham saw his market value hit €180m, and make him the joint most valuable player in world football. As can be seen below too, at the age of just 20, Bellingham has achieved a lot more than Kane did at this stage of his own career.

He is rising to the big occasions too. In October, Bellingham scored twice including a stunning winner in injury time to secure a 2-1 for Madrid in Catalonia. Last week, the 20 year old struck another late winner to break Barcelona hearts at the Bernabeu - it was his first club goal since February. He scored 10 goals in his first 11 league games this season. Bellingham has also already made 29 caps for England, and if he can keep up this rate of playing international games for his entire career, he would be sure to beat Peter Shilton’s cap record of 125 appearances for the Three Lions. 

In the Champions League, Bellingham has also been a menace. The midfielder has four goals and four assists in nine games this term. In total, including his time at Dortmund, Bellingham already has 12 goals and 11 assists in the Champions League - a magnificent statistic for a 20-year-old midfield player. This is the first tie Bellingham has ever made it to the semi-final stage, with the Englishmen twice being knocked out in the quarter-finals with Dortmund. He is sure to be a key component as to whether Real Madrid can claim a 15th Champions League victory this season.