Steven Gerrard says Harry Kane does not need to join another team to find happiness, as it would mean more to win a trophy with Tottenham than any other club.
Kane stayed at Tottenham for the 2021-22 campaign, despite asking to leave the north London side after Manchester City made a bid reportedly in excess of £100million.
Following a slow start to the season, which many put down to his failure to seal a move away, the England skipper has regained top form since mid-December.
Indeed, since December 19, Kane has scored 14 goals and assisted five more in all competitions.
Over that timeframe, only Kylian Mbappe (20) and Karim Benzema (24) have been directly involved in more goals than Kane s 19 among players from Europe s top five leagues.
Despite the 28-year-old s impressive form in the second half of the season, Tottenham will end the campaign without any silverware as Kane s wait for a trophy goes on.
But Gerrard, who spent all but one season of his 18-year playing career with boyhood side Liverpool, hopes to see his compatriot stay at Tottenham for a while longer yet.
I admire his loyalty to Tottenham and, of course, I m sure it s been tempting for him on many occasions to go and take one of those options, said Aston Villa boss Gerrard.
The Spurs fans should enjoy him and admire the loyalty he s given them. You can see a guy who is desperate for success with Tottenham and I have a lot of admiration for that.
He might still have the chance to achieve a couple of things in his career which might mean more to him with Tottenham than anyone else because of what they have given him.
Gerrard, who came close to swapping Liverpool for Chelsea in 2005, added: That s what it boiled down to with me.
The decision was, yes I could go to three or four teams in a foreign country or a couple domestically who maybe have a better chance of winning.
But winning something with your team the one you love and the supporters you love I think that will mean more to him for the rest of his life than a short-term fix.
While clearly a fan of Kane, Gerrard will hope the in-form striker has a quiet day on Saturday when Villa host Tottenham in the Premier League.
Kane has scored in all three of his away league meetings with Villa for Spurs and could become the second player after Romelu Lukaku to net in four on the spin against them.
Ahead of the contest at Villa Park, Gerrard revealed his regret at not being able to play alongside Kane, who made his England debut a year after Gerrard s final cap.
I wish I had the opportunity to play with him; you always want to play with top players, Gerrard said.
The way he plays would have helped my game to the next level, and I ve got enough confidence and belief in the way I played, I might have been able to help him.
I played with world-class players with England, and unfortunately, I never got the chance to play with him.
He s the perfect captain for England right now, a world-class player and with the way he carries himself on and off the pitch.
