Throughout, Kane is like a nervous groom sitting at the front of the church, waiting for his spouse-to-be to walk down the aisle. He keeps combing his hair with the palm of his hand. No matter how good Henry’s banter is, awards ceremonies do have a tendency to drag – especially when everyone is really there to find out who’s won the main event. There are other awards of course – young player, goalkeeper, coach, team – but when the fifth straight gong goes to a Spaniard, the room sighs slightly after another “_Buenas noches, Londres_” speech.
It’s in between the commercial breaks – or, as Henry quips, “hydration breaks” – when all the action happens. Rodri is straight out of his seat, working the room like a Hollywood agent looking for his next big thing. Yes, it’s in London, but it feels like we’re in Spain, given the sheer amount of Spaniards under the Palladium’s lights: Luis de la Fuente, Unai Emery, David Raya, Alexia Putellas, Cata Coll, Unai Simón, Mikel Arteta… the list goes on. Meanwhile, the king of nonchalance, Olise, is slumped in his chair like a kid outside the headmaster’s office. And Kane, with the air of a foreigner in his home town, remains seated – a picture of focus.
A few more surprises to report: Jamie Carragher getting a shout-out before Lionel Messi was not on my bingo card. Neither was finding out that _Game of Thrones_’ Sophie Turner would like to play Chloe Kelly in a film about the Lionesses’ success story. There’s a nice tribute to Kevin Keegan, and four-year-old Keyne Yamal – who rightly declined our dap request earlier – nearly nods off, bless.
Finally, the moment Harry Kane has been waiting for. Up out of his seat and definitely not chatting to Rodri about Manchester City’s 115 charges, he gets a tap on his shoulder. It’s Gary Lineker!