Harry Kane says Ballon d’Or wait is 'very stressful' for family

Harry Kane said the wait to discover whether he has won the Ballon d’Or is "very stressful" for his family as the winner is due to be revealed at the London Palladium on Monday night, and he goes into the ceremony as the odds-on favourite.

Kane, the Bayern Munich and England striker, is 33 years old and was prolific last season, scoring 61 goals for Bayern and 12 for England. This season he has 10 goals for Bayern and six for England. His recent form is part of the case for him being the front-runner for the award.

"I think my wife would prefer to know and my family … it’s very stressful for everyone," Kane said, when asked whether he would prefer to be told in advance of the ceremony.

He accepted that the uncertainty is engineered as part of the occasion and said he understood the organisers’ rationale. "I can see why they don’t tell people. They want everyone to go, all the big names, and there will be more people watching it if they don’t know so I can understand why.

Kane also described his own feelings about the waiting process. "From my point of view, of course I’d love to know to just kind of see and not have to wait throughout the whole night. But it is their decision, I can’t control that. We’ll have to just enjoy it and try not to stress out too much. I try not to think about it. Obviously it is hard not to. There are always rumours and stuff flying around so you try to stay away from it."

On the pitch this week Kane converted a penalty in Wednesday night’s 2-2 Champions League draw with Arsenal at the Allianz Arena. His standout contribution in that match included an inch-perfect through ball that set up Alphonso Davies to make it 1-1.

Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal is listed as the second-favourite in the betting for the Ballon d’Or, with Kylian Mbappé of Real Madrid next in the odds.

The Ballon d’Or winner will be announced at the London Palladium on Monday night, where Kane and the other nominees will learn the outcome.