Kane keen on Patriots success at Super Bowl 51

Millions of viewers around the world will be tuning in to watch ‘Super Bowl 51’ tonight – and Harry Kane will certainly be one of them.

Having netted the match-winning penalty against Middlesbrough on Saturday, our England striker is now switching his attention to a different kind of football as his beloved New England Patriots take on Atlanta Falcons in NFL’s showpiece occasion.

The Patriots are one of the most successful teams in NFL history, winning 14 AFC East divisional titles in the last 16 seasons and they will be competing in a record ninth Super Bowl when they take on the Falcons in Houston, Texas.

Led by their inspirational coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady, New England go into the game as strong favourites and, while he knows they face stiff opposition against an in-form Falcons team, Harry is confident the Patriots can add a fifth Super Bowl crown to their roll of honours.

“It will be a great game and I’m buzzing the Pats are in there, they’ve been great all season and Tom Brady has been on fire,” Harry, who has even named one of his dogs ‘Brady’, told our official matchday programme on Saturday.

“The Falcons are the team to beat though. They’ve got everything going for them, everyone knew how good their offense was and the defence has stepped up as well. They have great wide receivers, two great running backs so it will be a tough game for the Patriots. I can’t wait to watch it.”

Although he’s only been a fan of American football since about 2010, Harry’s interest in the sport has gathered pace in recent years and he follows it avidly during the season.

“About six years ago, maybe even longer, my other half’s brother Tom was watching it when I was around her house one day and I didn’t even know the rules!

“Tom was trying to explain it all to me. I think he was watching college football at the time. I began watching and once I started learning how the game works and all the rules, I fell in love with it. From there, I started watching the NFL. I knew about Tom Brady before, I’d seen videos of him on YouTube, so I went with the New England Patriots and I haven’t looked back since.

“It’s definitely one of my favourite sports. The NFL season only runs from September to February, so I look forward to it all year and every Sunday, I’ll watch Red Zone (on Sky Sports) for six hours, sometimes more and thoroughly enjoy every minute of it.

“A few years ago we were on a pre-season tour in America and we went to Seattle, where we got to use the Seahawks’ facilities and met a few players, that was amazing. We met Doug Baldwin (pictured, above) and Steve Hauschka, the kicker, and did a few drills with them. Baldwin is one of the best wide receivers in the NFL and I thoroughly enjoyed that.

“As for this game, I expect Tom will probably come round and we’ll play a bit of Madden beforehand and then get ready to watch the game. It should be a cracker.”