Harry Kane remains a doubt for Bayern Munich as the club prepare for a major Champions League quarter-final first leg at Real Madrid, with Vincent Kompany confirming that a late call will decide whether the striker starts at Estadio Bernabeu this Tuesday.
The 32-year-old forward has been managing an ankle problem and sat out England's friendly defeat against Japan, then missed Bayern Munich's dramatic 3-2 Bundesliga victory over Freiburg, yet Kane still travels as part of the squad for the Real Madrid tie.
Kane has produced a huge scoring return for Bayern Munich in the 2025-26 season, hitting 48 goals in 40 games across all competitions, while also becoming the only English player to strike 10 or more times in back-to-back European Cup or Champions
League campaigns.
Since joining Bayern Munich, Kane has scored more Champions League goals than any other player, registering 29 strikes in 34 matches, with 11 goals in the 2024-25 season and 10 in the 2025-26 campaign, underlining why Real Madrid will monitor every update on the striker's fitness.
Madrid v Bayern is already the most-played clash in major European competition, with all 28 meetings coming in the European Cup or Champions League, 26 of those in knockout rounds, but Bayern Munich have gone nine matches without beating Real Madrid, drawing two and losing seven.
Bayern Munich have not endured a run of 10 or more games without victory against one opponent in all competitions since a sequence of 12 matches versus Werder Bremen between 1988 and 1993, while Real Madrid, 15-time European champions, target another strong home result.
Los Blancos have won all four Champions League knockout matches this season, and Alvaro Arbeloa could become only the third coach to open a managerial career in the competition with five straight knockout wins, after Hansi Flick with Bayern in 2019-20 and Luis Enrique with Barcelona in 2014-15.
Harry Kane Bayern Munich Real Madrid team news and reactions
Kompany stressed that Bayern Munich will not gamble with Kane's health despite the scale of the Real Madrid test, outlining that medical advice and the player's condition after training will guide the final decision on whether the striker starts or features from the bench.
Kompany addressed Kane's situation and said: "Harry's part of the team so that's positive for us. We have to wait until tomorrowto get the final information, then we will make our decision, Kompamy told reporters. It was important that he did a lot of training today. I don't think he's lost his rhythm. "
Joshua Kimmich highlighted Kane's influence on Bayern Munich beyond goals alone, stressing that Real Madrid will face a complete forward, not just a finisher who waits in the penalty area, while also praising the captaincy qualities that have shaped the team during the current season.
Kimmich said: "How many goals has he scored? How many assists does he have? Forty or 50 this season? This shows how important he isapart from all the goalsextremely vital for our game. We are glad he is here with us. He is not only a poacher or a selfish goalscorer, just trying to score as many goals as he can for us. He is an absolute leader who is always trying to have the maximum success for the team. This is a very special mindset for an attacking player. He's a role model. "
Harry Kane Bayern Munich Real Madrid tactical outlook
Kompany faced repeated questions about Harry Kane and replied: "Harry Kane knows how important this game is, but it is important to take a decision with each player. You keep asking about Harry Kane and to be honest I like it. I don't mind but I don't give you an answer. "
Looking beyond the fitness debate, Kompany described the challenge Real Madrid pose for Bayern Munich and said: "Everything will matter tomorrow. This is my first time here as a coach, but we have a lot of experience in games like this, Kompanysaid. The outcome will be decided in part by tactics, but above all by the little things - such as the individual quality of the players. We've prepared for Real and we've seen what they did against City. It's perhaps the toughest away game you can play, but we want to win. "
The quarter-final first leg therefore brings together Real Madrid's strong recent record in this rivalry and Alvaro Arbeloa's perfect knockout run, against a Bayern Munich side shaped by Harry Kane's goal scoring, with Kompany trusting experience, detail and a careful selection call on the striker to keep the tie open.
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