Andros Townsend admits he didn't see Harry Kane becoming one of the world's best forwards.

The England captain is often talked about as one of the top strikers in Europe after accumulating 181 in 278 appearances for Spurs.

But his ex-Tottenham teammate Townsend says he has been surprised by the 26-year-old's ascension.

The Crystal Palace winger told talkSPORT: "Harry is one of the best strikers in the world and I didn't see it coming, but he always had the foundations to do it.

"From the first time I saw him he's always had an incredible ability to score goals.

"Maybe he didn't have the mobility he does now, or maybe he was half a yard slower, but he always possessed that ability to score left foot, right foot, from any position on the pitch.

"And in the last three or four years he's been in the gym, he's bulked up, he's got quicker, he's got stronger, he can head the ball, he can run.

"He's pretty much an all-round player now and one of the best in the world, and rightly so."