Vincent Janssen wants to play with Harry Kane, rather than be his backup

A general view of the Tottenham Hotspur crest ahead of the Barclays Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United at White Hart Lane on October 6, 2013
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Tottenham Hotspur forward Vincent Janssen says that he wants to partner Harry Kane up front when the striker returns from injury.

Vincent Janssen has claimed that he wants to play alongside Harry Kane rather than be used as a backup striker at Tottenham Hotspur.

The 22-year-old, who joined the North London club from AZ Alkmaar for £18.5m in the summer, has been behind Kane in the pecking order so far this season.

The Dutchman is expected to get more game time now, though, since Kane is facing a spell on the sidelines with ankle ligament damage.

However, Janssen, who scored his first Spurs goal from the penalty spot in Wednesday's 5-0 rout of Gillingham in the third round of the EFL Cup, is hopeful that when Kane is fighting fit, the pair can strike up a partnership on the pitch.

"I am ready to play," PA quotes Janssen as saying. "I feel bad for Harry but if he is fit I want to play with him. He is a very good player. We played some games together and it went very well.

"He has a lot of qualities - he is one of the best strikers in the world so it is nice to play together with him. I can learn a lot from him but at the end I want to play a lot with him.

"It is nice that he is here. It is nice to get the first goal but it is not the most important thing. I have enough confidence and, if I hadn't scored, for me I was sure I would score in the next game. You know that when you come to England there are a lot of players who like to play a more physical game. I like that also so it is not a problem - I just have to adapt."

Janssen will vie for a starting spot in this weekend's Premier League match against Middlesbrough at the Riverside.

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TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City66001851318
2Tottenham HotspurSpurs6420103714
3Arsenal6411157813
4Liverpool6411169713
5Everton6411104613
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd6402127512
7Crystal Palace6312107310
8Chelsea6312109110
9Southampton62227618
10West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom62227618
11Watford62131011-17
12Leicester CityLeicester6213811-37
13Burnley621358-37
14Hull City6213712-57
15Bournemouth621349-57
16Middlesbrough612369-35
17Swansea CitySwansea6114510-54
18West Ham UnitedWest Ham6105716-93
19Stoke CityStoke6024415-112
20Sunderland6015512-71