Tottenham head coach Mauricio Pochettino believes Harry Kane is a strong contender to win the PFA Player of the Year award.

Kane was given the Young Player of the Year prize last season and is currently leading the Premier League goalscoring chart, having scored 21 times in the top flight this season.

The 22-year-old enhanced his reputation even further last Saturday night, striking clinically to start England’s comeback against world champions Germany as the national team came from 2-0 down to triumph 3-2 in Berlin – and Pochettino believes he deserves to be firmly in the reckoning when the individual awards are handed out at the end of the campaign.

“In my opinion yes, my players are the best, always,” he joked. “But in this case, to be honest and objective, I think yes – he is one of the contenders to be the best player of the year in the Premier League.”

Kane has been wearing a protective mask since breaking his nose against Crystal Palace on February 21, and has scored six goals in his last six games for club and country.

He is expected to be mask-free against Liverpool on Saturday, though, with Pochettino reporting: “Today he trained without his mask, which is good

for him because always it is a little bit tough to play with this mask on your face.”

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