If you’d have said that Harry Kane would follow on from Gareth Bale and Luis Suarez to win the Players’ Player of the Year award last summer, there’s every chance you would have been carted off to the loony bin.

How could a striker not getting a game at Spurs, who’s flopped on a series of loan deals through the Football League and has not looked up to the task in the Premier League win the top individual prize? Madness.

However, the 21-year-old is very much in the mix after what can only be described as a sensational season. Kane has emerged from nowhere under Mauricio Pochettino this term, taking his chances in the Europa League and cup games to rise through the ranks and win a spot in the England team while scoring goals on a weekly basis.

There’s plenty of competition, but we at FFC Towers are firmly in Team Kane… and here are FIVE reasons why…

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Joint top goalscorer

19 goals this season puts Harry Kane at the top of the Premier League’s goalscoring charts, level with £32m Chelsea man Diego Costa. Add to that his eight goals in all competitions, and the 21-year-old really is English football’s top talent when it comes to finding the net. European achievements don’t directly contribute to the Players’ Player of the Year award, but the fact that he’s been able to score s regularly at such a young age in a variety of tournaments is testament to his skills.

Meteoric rise

At the back end of last season Kane was facing a move away from White Hart Lane. He was some distance from the first-team, had shown little sign of breaking through and was barely even spoken about by Spurs fans. However, Adebayor and Soldado’s woes opened the door, and the youngster has seized his chance. Kane is proof of what confidence and dedication can achieve, with the forward, no disrespect intended, not the most technically adept footballer out there. He has since risen from his fringe role to become Spurs’ key striker and an England international. Take a bow!

Lack of genuine competition

With the last two winners of the award, Gareth Bale and Luis Suarez both out of the way in Spain, Kane doesn’t have a great deal of competition. Eden Hazard is, perhaps, a better player, but the unlikable nature of Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea allied to a lack of goals and assists – 11 and six in the league – mean he’s not getting the hype he deserves, while fellow Blues star Diego Costa’s feisty streak and tendency to get involved in the dark arts have all but eroded the praise his 19 goals, without penalties, should be getting.

Sergio Aguero has spent too long injured, as has Daniel Sturridge, while no Manchester United player has truly shone. Alexis Sanchez looked to be a contender early on, but his form has dipped a little since Christmas.

Likable character

It may not be a characteristic that often gets brought up in the run up to such awards, but Kane is a genuinely liable bloke. He may not be the most intelligent person – he thought three points were on offer from a cup game earlier this season! – but he rarely gets caught up in controversy, works hard on the pitch and is always thrilled whenever he scores.

Seems able to take on any challenge

From fringe player to England international. Every challenge Kane has been set, he’s come through with flying colours. He was tasked with getting goals in cup games at the start of the season. He did just that. Then set the aim of taking that form into the Premier League. Check.

Pochettino asked for consistency. He’s not top of the scoring charts at the club. And on Friday England offered him a chance. He netted in just over a minute into his debut!