Which of these Manchester United and Spurs strikers is more vital to their team?

That question is actually a little more difficult to answer than first suspected, as we aren’t delving into who is the better player. It is about who is more vital to their team, meaning we have to also consider the Englishmen’s team-mates in this equation, rather than isolating it purely to personal brilliance…or otherwise.

One stark difference is prominent however. Whilst both are important players for their clubs – Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur – Rooney will probably not be so in five years’ time, whereas Kane will continue to be a key figure on the pitch for potentially another good eight or ten years.

Right now, it is unlikely that too many would argue that Kane is the better player than Rooney, as the Old Trafford stalwart is now reaching the autumn of his career, sliding down into midfield after spending countless years as a striker. However, is he more important to Spurs than Rooney is to United?

I would argue yes.

Two seasons ago, Tottenham Hotspur were adjusting to life without their Welsh talisman Gareth Bale. The pacey and powerful winger was the man that more often than not got Spurs the goals, so undoubtedly, they were going to miss his ability.

However, since the turn of the new decade, after capable forwards such as Jermain Defoe, Dimitar Berbatov and Robbie Keane departed, Tottenham were always a side struggling to find a world class striker. Roberto Soldado was brought in, but proved to be an unmitigated disaster.

A young Harry Kane was never really considered an option, until some incredible performances in the UEFA Europa League; one of which comically included playing as a goalkeeper for a few minutes, raised the Englishman’s profile.

Starts in the Premier League and goals began to follow, and Tottenham’s performances began to improve under new manager Mauricio Pochettino. All of a sudden, Kane was scoring goals left, right and centre, in a story that is similar to that of Marcus Rashford’s at Manchester United.

Harry Kane had a slow start to last season, but he finished it with 25 league goals and the Golden Boot award as testimony to his sustained brilliance. He is now arguably England’s best striker and without him in the side, it is not immediately obvious where Spurs’ goals would come from, despite the talent of his team-mates such as Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli and Erik Lamela.

In contrast, nowadays at Manchester United, it is not Wayne Rooney who is making the biggest difference.

The experienced number 10 has been a prolific striker for the Red Devils since he joined from Everton in 2004. Forming deadly attacking partnerships with Dimitar Berbatov, Carlos Tevez, Cristiano Ronaldo and Robin Van Persie over the years, Rooney is not short of being the all time record goal-scorer for the Old Trafford outfit, and is nothing short of a club legend.

These days however; and last season was a particularly strong example, he has struggled to make the same sort of impact. In all fairness, the Merseysider’s influence is not as abundantly obvious as it was, now that has taken up more of an attacking midfield role rather than that of a striker. Nevertheless, the likes of Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford are far more deadly than the England captain up to.

However, one job Rooney does superbly is his role with the armband on. Being one of the most experienced players in the current Manchester United side, he is something of an inspirational figure to the young players like the aforementioned Rashford and Martial.

Furthermore, his passion for the club is still as strong as ever. He pretty much single-handedly launched United back into the FA Cup Final last month against Crystal Palace through an incredible and spirited solo charge through the Eagles’ defence, leading to Juan Mata’s equaliser.

In conclusion, it can most definitely be said that both Wayne Rooney and Harry Kane are very important players for Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur respectively, and will certainly both perform important roles in England’s Euro 2016 tournament. However, I would argue that Kane is all-important bit more important to the Londoners.

Rooney’s role has changed over the years from previously being the chief goal-scorer to now coming to the fore as the leader, whereas Kane is the one that can produce a chance and a goal out of seemingly very little indeed.

I believe that Manchester United would probably do just as well in terms of league position with Wayne Rooney not in the side despite his importance, whereas the current Tottenham side without Harry Kane would be significantly weaker.